Channel Surfing: Chuck's Renewal Chances Looking Up, Glee Circles Britney Spears Episode, Parks and Recreation, and More

Welcome to your Monday morning television briefing.

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that a potential fourth season of NBC's Chuck is looking more and more likely. While we shouldn't breath a collective sigh of relief just yet, Ausiello speaks to an unnamed source close to the production who tells him that it's "looking good" that NBC will renew the Warner Bros. Television-produced action-comedy for another season, bumping the series' position on the Bubble Show Scorecard from "could go either way" to "safe bet." Still, it's important to note that a final decision about Chuck's ultimate fate at the network won't be made for several more weeks... (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Additionally, Ausiello also has a first-look video at the May 3rd episode of Chuck (entitled "Chuck Versus the Role Models"), which features an homage to Hart to Hart and features guest stars Fred Willard and Swoosie Kurtz as a spy couple who are tasked with training Chuck and Sarah. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Glee co-creator Ryan Murphy has told Entertainment Weekly that he is considering creating an episode around the music of Britney Spears, following an idea floated by Spears' manager on Twitter. "I’m interested in the Britney Spears idea," said Murphy, who is also considering episodes based around Billy Joel, Led Zepplin, and Courtney Love. "I’ve always loved her. I’m entertaining it. I think young kids would like that." (Entertainment Weekly's Music Mix)

Universal Media Studios and NBC have signed Parks and Recreation co-creator Mike Schur to an overall deal that will keep him at the helm of NBC's Parks for several years to come and also develop new material down the line. "I'm an NBC nerd," Schur told Variety. "Every time NBC takes a hit in the press I get angry. They've been nothing but good to me. Their notes on scripts are good. This deal is about solidifying this show and me at NBC." (Variety)

Meanwhile, The Wrap's Josef Adalian reports on the real reason Rob Lowe is being added to the cast of Parks and Recreation: NBC Entertainment chief Angela Bromstad, who felt the series "could benefit from some added star wattage," according to Adalian, and that Lowe could provide the sort of element that Alec Baldwin provides to fellow Thursday night comedy 30 Rock. Still, producers weren't upset by the, er, request to add Lowe to the ensemble, though it did take some pitching from Jeff Gaspin in order for Mike Schur and Greg Daniels to envision how Lowe would fit into the world of Pawnee. "Some of the fans have expressed fears that he won't fit into the world (of Pawnee), but I think those fears will be allayed when they see him," said Schur. He's handsomer than everyone else, but he's also happy to be part of a large ensemble. He fits in because he's being really funny." While Adam Scott's contract locks him in for the long-term, Lowe's deal will be revisited down the line when the network and producers have a chance to see how he meshes with the comedy series. (The Wrap's TVMoJoe)

Meanwhile, you can catch a glimpse of Rob Lowe and Adam Scott on the set of NBC's Parks and Recreation below, courtesy of a new video released by the Peacock:



HBO has announced return dates for comedies Entourage and Hung, which will return with new seasons on June 27th. (Variety)

The Hollywood Reporter's James Hibberd has a breakdown of which pilots are currently looking like front-runners for series orders at the broadcast network, including CBS' Hawaii Five-O, NBC's Rockford Files and Undercovers, as well as David E. Kelley's Kindreds, Love Bites, Chase, This Little Piggy, Friends with Benefits, Next, Perfect Couples, and Outsources all looking good at the Peacock. CBS is said to be circling Chaos, Defenders, Bleep My Dad Says, Mike & Molly, True Love, and Hawaii Five-O. FOX is said to be high on Breakout Kings, Midland, Ride Along, Terra Nova, Security, Keep Hope Alive, and Most Likely to Succeed. ABC is keen for 187, Off the Map, Body of Evidence, No Ordinary Family, Wright Vs. Wrong, and Mr. Sunshine. At the CW, the network is particularly high on Nikita and Betwixt. (Hollywood Reporter)

Sorry Gina Torres fans, looks like the former Firefly star won't be popping up on Season Two of Syfy's Warehouse 13 after all. Torres has been replaced by Tia Carerre (Relic Hunter) on the sci-fi series, which returns on July 6th for its second season. Lindsay Wagner (Bionic Woman), meanwhile, will guest star as an "in-house doctor for Warehouse 13, home base for the secret storage facility that houses all sorts of strange phenomena being tracked down by agents (Eddie McClintock and Joanne Kelly)." (Hollywood Reporter)

The Wrap's Josef Adalian is reporting that Warner Bros. TV is still in "deep talks" to move Conan O'Brien's production company Conaco from NBC Universal to TBS, the cable network now home to O'Brien's upcoming latenight revival. Sources indicated that such a deal could be made by the end of the month. "The deal has been a no-brainer since the April 12 announcement that O'Brien was head to Turner's TBS, which, like WBTV, is part of the Time Warner family," wrote Adalian. "Turner chief Steve Koonin told TheWrap then that he wanted to do 'multiple projects together,' making it inevitable that there'd be a production deal with WBTV." (The Wrap's TVMoJoe)

The New York Times's Joe Rhodes has a feature about FOX's upcoming action-comedy series The Good Guys, starring Bradley Whitford and Colin Hanks and created by Matt Nix (Burn Notice). Series, produced by FTVS, was ordered to series without a pilot. "Matt walks in the door with not only a finished script and a pitch for what the whole season was going to be," Fox Entertainment president Kevin Reilly told Rhodes, "but with a willingness to deliver a network-quality show on a cable budget. We are getting a lot of bang for our buck, literally." (The New York Times)

Over at Los Angeles Times's Show Tracker site, Claire Zulkey talks to the latest winner of Project Runway. (Los Angeles Times's Show Tracker)

The cast of ABC's reality competition series Dancing with the Stars seems to be enjoying themselves more now that Kate Gosselin has been booted from the series. "It’s a whole new place around the set of DWTS this week!" an unnamed insider told Fancast's Kelly Will. "The cast and crew are working in an entirely new environment. Kate wasn’t the problem, it was the drama that followed her. It was like a cloud of energy everyday that changed the dynamics of the cast when they were filming segments. Now that Kate is out, it’s a quieter place to be. It was a media storm when Kate was around, not by her choice, but it was... Jon may not have been a cast member of the show, but every time he did something in public it quickly trickled down onto the set. If Kate was dealing with something difficult, people noticed, heard about it and had an opinion. The moms were supportive and the guys pretty much tried to avoid it. Bachelor Jake was always very nice to Kate – people liked her but she had so much to deal with besides the show. It was hard to really befriend her because of the media circus." (Fancast)

E! Online's Megan Masters talks with Gossip Girl's Billy Baldwin about his upcoming arc as Serena's father. "This is a good guy who has made some bad choices in his life," said Baldwin about Van der Woodsen, who he said "poses some interesting conflicts and problems for everybody." (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

NBC is bumping this week's episode of Mercy to 9 pm (and filling the 8 pm timeslot with a repeat of Minute to Win It) in an effort to give the struggling freshman drama series a shot in the arm, hoping that it will have a better chance at luring viewers when it's not leading off the night. (The Wrap's TVMoJoe)

TV Squad's Chris Harnick has an interview with Nigella Lawson about her upcoming new series, Jamie Oliver, and KFC's Double Down. "I don't want to feel guilty every time I eat some potato chips," said Lawson, laughing. "But I do admire him for the work he's done. I have to say, he's a great boy." (TV Squad)

Showtime will offer a sneak-peek at the upcoming reality series The Real L Word tonight at 11 pm ET/PT, following new episodes of Nurse Jackie and United States of Tara. The series itself will launch on Sunday, June 20th at 10 pm ET/PT. (via press release)

The Hollywood Reporter has a recap of Friday night's Psych panel at the Paley Center. "Discovering, inventing or stealing a pill that reverses the aging process, kidnapping Barbara Hershey and watching Boxcar Bertha with her, convincing Gus to purchase one of those Japanese video games where you dance ... and possibly kissing Detective Juliet O'Hara on the mouth," said James Roday when asked about his character's five-year plan. (Hollywood Reporter)

CBS Television Studios has signed a two-year overall deal with former NUMB3RS executive producer Don McGill, under which he will come aboard CSI: Crime Scene Investigation as an executive producer next season and develop new projects for the studio. (Variety)

The Daytime Emmy Awards telecast is returning to CBS and will air during primetime on Sunday, June 27th. (Hollywood Reporter)

Pennsylvania labor officials has approved TLC's request to film Jon and Kate Gosselin's eight children for a series of Kate Plus 8 specials to air on the network, according to Entertainment Weekly's Lynette Rice, who reports that the kids will not be appearing in TLC's spin-off series Twist of Kate, which launches this summer. (Entertainment Weekly's Hollywood Insider)

Disney Channel has ordered a second season of I'm in the Band. (via press release)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: No Torchwood for FOX, Mireille Enos Gets Killing for AMC, Gervais and Merchant Find Life's Too Short, and More

Welcome to your Thursday morning television briefing.

Hollywood Reporter's James Hibberd is reporting that FOX and BBC Worldwide Productions have mutually agreed not to proceed on the US version of Torchwood that was in development at the network. However, it still appears that the project is alive and will be shopped to other networks. "BBC Worldwide Productions and the FOX Broadcasting Company have mutually agreed not to progress together with a 13-episode serialized Torchwood format," said BBC Worldwide in a statement. "We are currently in discussion with several interested networks." Furthermore, BBC Worldwide's Jane Tranter said that they are forging ahead with the development of the project: "It's very much ongoing and very much alive," she told Hibberd, but reiterated that the company is not planning an American version of Doctor Who. [Editor: Whew, though I can't imagine Torchwood without John Barrowman, either.] (Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed)

Big Love's divine Mireille Enos has scored the lead role in AMC drama pilot The Killing, where she will star opposite Michelle Forbes and Billy Campbell in the project, which is based on Danish series Forbrydelsen. Enos will play Sarah, the lead homicide detective investigating the murder of a young girl as the story unfolds from multiple perspectives. Brent Sexton, Eric Ladin, Jamie Anne Allman, and Joel Kinnaman also star. Patty Jenkins (Monster) is set to direct from a script by Veena Sud. (Deadline.com)

The Office and Extras creators Ricky Gervais and Steven Merchant have landed a pilot commitment from Auntie Beeb for a half-hour single camera comedy project entitled >Life's Too Short, which will star Warwick Davis (Harry Potter, Willow) as himself in "an observation comedy which follows Warwick's day-to-day life in a small world where big things happen." Gervais and Merchant will also appear in the project in supporting roles. "We're having so much fun working with Warwick," said Gervais. "Pound for pound, he is one of the funniest men I know." (Variety)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Glee co-creator Ryan Murphy is already in talks with Madonna about a sequel to this week's Material Girl-themed episode ("The Power of Madonna") for the fall, with Murphy telling Ausiello, "Madonna and her people are into it and want it to happen." The episode would feature six tracks that didn't appear in this week's episode. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Cartoon Network is developing a new version of Warner Bros.' Looney Tunes, featuring Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck and will be moving further into the live-action arena over the next year. The Looney Tunes Show "takes Bugs and Daffy out of the woods and puts them into the suburbs with 'colorful neighbors' including Yosemite Sam, Granny, Tweety and Sylvester," according to Hollywood Reporter's James Hibberd. (Hollywood Reporter)

Julianne Moore has denied reports that she was ever attached to the US remake of Prime Suspect that NBC is developing, telling TV Guide Magazine's Will Keck, "That was never true. Rumor." (TV Guide Magazine)

HBO has ordered a second season of comedy How To Make It in America, with eight episodes on tap for summer 2011. (Entertainment Weekly's Hollywood Insider)

TLC has ordered six episodes of culinary reality series Best Food Ever, which offers a cross-country culinary overview of "popular dishes and restaurants." Series, narrated by John Goodman, will launch May 3rd at 10 pm ET/PT with an episode about the country's best sandwiches. (Variety)

Showtime will be bringing Lisa Kudrow's online series Web Therapy to television, announcing that it will thread together the series' 45 mini-sodes into half-hour episodes. Series will launch later in 2010. (Hollywood Reporter)

The Wrap's Josef Adalian (soon to be departing to take over as West Coast editor of New York Magazine's Vulture site) is reporting that TNT has slated the launch of Rizzoli & Isles on Monday, July 12th at 10 pm ET/PT, leading out of the sixth season of The Closer, which launches the same night. Elsewhere, TBS has slated the return of comedy My Boys for Sunday, July 25th at 10 pm ET/PT. (The Wrap's TVMoJoe)

Universal Media Studios has signed a one-year overall deal with former It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia writes Sonny Lee and Patrick Walsh, under which they will develop new comedy projects for the studio. (Congrats, Sonny!) (Hollywood Reporter)

TruTV is developing an unofficial spinoff of MTV's Jersey Shore called Wicked Summah that will depict Boston locals who summer on Cape Cod. (Broadcasting & Cable)

Nikki Finke is reporting that the CW is said to be considering picking up two UK reality series and retransmitting them here in the US this summer. (Deadline.com)

Comedy Central has ordered seven additional episodes of animated comedy Ugly Americans, which will debut in October. (Hollywood Reporter)

BBC Worldwide has promoted Gareth Williams to SVP of content and production for South America. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Michelle Forbes Gets Killing, Annie Wersching Talks 24 Consequences, Glee, Lost, Modern Family, and More

Welcome to your Thursday morning television briefing.

From maenad to murder victim's parent: Former True Blood series regular Michelle Forbes has joined the cast of AMC drama pilot The Killing, along with Brent Sexton (In the Valley of Elah), Eric Ladin (Generation Kill), and Jamie Anne Allman (The Notebook). They join the previously announced Billy Campbell in the drama pilot, from Veena Sud and Mikkel Bondesen, which revolves around the police investigation into the murder of a young girl. Forbes and Sexton will play Mitch and Stanley, the girl's parents. (Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed)

If you haven't seen Monday's episode of 24, stop reading. TVGuide.com's Natalie Abrams has an interview with 24's Annie Wersching, who discusses the aftermath of this week's surprising twist and what's next for her. "In not knowing each other for that long, they are very similar and understood each other in a lot of ways," said Wersching about the relationship between Renee and Jack Bauer. "No one truly understood what it is to exist as someone who has to do the things that Jack Bauer does. Renee is as close as he was going to get to finding someone that really got him, and vice versa... Poor Jack cannot get a break. As you can imagine, he wants to take care of every single person who was involved with this... I'm so sad that I died, but she's very much still there in these last episodes all the way up until the end. For the most part, he goes rogue and wants to do things that people don't want him to do. Of course, he's Jack Bauer, so he finds a way to do them." (TVGuide.com)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Jessalyn Gilsig's Terri and Cory Monteith's Finn are getting a "major season-ending storyline" that won't involve them becoming enmeshed in a romantic relationship. (Whew.) "Finn gets a job at Sheets & Things," co-creator Ryan Murphy told Ausiello. "He is very down on himself, and Terri realizes that she was not very supportive of her husband and she sees a lot of him in Finn. She met Will at 16, so she sees a way to redemption…a way to redo that relationship in a positive way [by acting] almost as Finn’s guardian angel, his fairy godmother. She gives him proper moral advice." The storyline will continue into Glee's second season, which launches this fall. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

SPOILER! E! Online's Megan Masters talks to Lost star Jorge Garcia about this week's Hurley-centric episode of the ABC drama series and about the explosive death of Zuleikha Robinson's Ilana. "Don't hold your breath about too much more information about Ilana," Garcia told Masters. "You will see her again, but there's a lot of stuff to get to in the next six hours, so..." [Editor: I figured that we'd at least see Ilana again before The End but assumed that we'd get at least some information about her backstory, either via flashback or the divergent reality.] (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

Fancast's Matt Webb Mitovich talks to Modern Family star Julie Bowen about iPads, Julianna and Clive, working with Sofia Vergara, and why she won't be returning to Lost for the final season. "I really wish that was true, but that’s just a rumor," said Bowen about filming Modern Family in Hawaii and sneaking off to shoot scenes for Lost. "I would have loved to have done more for Lost. I’m a huge fan of the show, I love doing the show..." (Fancast)

Boom: Michael Bay has teamed up with Magical Elves' Jane Lipsitz and Dan Cutforth to develop reality series One Way Out, a reality-based action-adventure series that that "pits everyday people against one another in a competition that involves physical challenges as well as the PSYOPS of creating alliances and keeping their own 'secret pasts' hidden from other players," according to Variety's Cynthia Littleton. Project is being shopped to the networks this week. (Variety)

Former Scrubs star Sarah Chalke is in high demand this development season: after shooting ABC comedy pilot Freshman, Chalke has now been cast in a second pilot, CBS high-school comedy Team Spitz. Given her role in Freshman, Chalke's participation in Team Spitz, where she will guest star as a high school guidance counselor, is said to be in second position. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Cast change afoot at Josh Schwartz and Matt Miller's CBS comedy pilot Hitched, where Sara Fletcher (My Secret Girlfriend) has replaced Kristin Kreuk just before the table read for the pilot. "Kreuk starred on two drama series, including her star-making turn on Smallville, and she was wonderful in an arc on Schwartz's NBC dramedy Chuck this season but she has never done a half-hour sitcom and Hitched ultimately proved not a perfect fit for her," wrote Deadline.com's Nellie Andreeva. (Deadline.com)

Tina Brown and Bill Haber have optioned Laura Lippman's novel "In a Strange City," which revolves around female investigative journalist Tess Monaghan (who becomes a gumshoe when her paper closes), with an eye to adapting the book as an ongoing television series. Jay Cocks (Gangs of New York) has been brought on to adapt Lippman's novel and the trio plan to shop the project to broadcast and cable networks for next year's development cycle. (Variety)

Carla Gugino (Watchmen) and Addison Timlin (Cashmere Mafia) have signed on to appear in multiple-episode story arcs next season on Showtime's Californication), where Gugino will play a love interest for David Duchovny's Hank and Timlin will play an actress who stars "in a film within the show," according to Deadline.com's Nellie Andreeva. (Deadline.com)

Comedy Central has ordered ten episodes of comedy The Onion Sports Network, will offer a satirical look at the work of sports. Project, executive produced by Julie Smith and Will Graham, will premiere in first quarter 2011. (Variety)

Production has been shut down on A&E's Steven Seagal: Lawman by the Jefferson Parish Police Department, following news that the series' star has been accused of sex trafficking. (Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed)

Color me intrigued: UK's Channel 4 is developing a female-oriented comedy with the creators of comedies Peep Show and Two Pints of Lager and a Bag of Chips. (Broadcast)

MyNetwork has shored up its fall primetime schedule, which will include off-network acquisitions of such series as Burn Notice, Monk, and Without a Trace. Returning to the schedule are Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?, and Don't Forget the Lyrics! (Broadcasting & Cable)

VH1 has ordered eight episodes of reality series Football Wives, which will follow the lives of NFL spouses. Project, from Shed Media, is set to launch at the end of 2010. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: HBO Renews Treme, Damages May Be Dead, Jared Harris Promoted on Mad Men, 24, and More

Welcome to your Wednesday morning television briefing.

It took just one episode, apparently, before HBO ordered a second season of New Orleans-set drama series Treme, from creators David Simon and Eric Overmyer. "We would have picked up this show last week," HBO president Michael Lombardo told The Hollywood Reporter's James Hibberd. "We've seen the first nine episodes it's as strong as any show we've seen. Much like The Wire, the audience is so passionate and so invested. We're about servicing our subscriber base and I believe that people will become addicted to this show. We have to be a place where this kind of excellence is giving space to continue." According to Lombardo, Season Two of Treme is being targeted for a spring 2011 debut, where it will likely be paired with the first season of fantasy drama Game of Thrones. "They should be ready about the same time," said Lombardo. "[Game] looks beautiful, the compelling scripts are just fantastic, we're doing reshoots but nothing major. The show is there." Production on Treme's second season will begin this fall. (Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed)

The Wrap's Josef Adalian, meanwhile, talks to Lombardo in a Q&A-style interview about the Treme renewal. "The first season of True Blood we picked up in the first week. Whether it was after the first day, I don't recall," Lombardo told Adalian. "But I must be candid: We knew we were picking this up (before the premiere). We were actually trying to arrange a phone call with David before we got numbers, but because of David Mills' funeral, that was just impossible. We were sure early on in a way that was unique." (The Wrap's TVMoJoe)

Variety's Stuart Levine is reporting that Monday night's season finale of FX's Damages may wind up being the series finale, after all. "Despite a meeting in the next two weeks between Sony Pictures Television and DirecTV to discuss the possibility of the Glenn Close skein changing networks, insiders say it doesn't look as though the drama is a good fit for the satellite provider," writes Levine. "Sony, of course, wants to see Damages continue, but the studio would have to take a substantial license-fee reduction. With what would be the fourth year of the show, and cast and crew expecting salary increases, it would likely be difficult -- though not impossible -- to cut costs." If Sony was able to broker a deal with DirecTV, their Channel 101 would want to take the first window of Damages' fourth season, which could be a problem for FX, which co-produces the legal drama. [Editor: I'm still keeping my fingers crossed that something could be worked out but in the meantime, I'm going to enjoy the finale as much as I possibly can.] (Variety)

Good news for Mad Men fans: Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Jared Harris has been promoted to series regular for Season Four of the period drama, which returns to AMC this summer. "Harris joined the Emmy-winning drama in Season Three as Lane Pryce, Sterling Cooper’s new financial officer (installed by UK parent company Putnam, Powell, and Low)," writes Ausiello. "In the finale, he became a founding partner in SCDP alongside Don Draper, Bert Cooper, and Roger Sterling." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Elsewhere, Ausiello also has a spoiler-laden interview with 24 executive producer Howard Gordon about this week's shocking twist... which I won't spoil here, but I will say that Gordon is candid about the decision they made and much more. "It was an incredibly emotional day," said Gordon about the final day of shooting on 24. "I’m just so incredibly proud to be a part of it... This has been an incredibly strong season. I can [only] judge it in terms of what my own opinion is of the show and what I hear about it anecdotally from the people who are friends and family, but I feel very proud of this year. Kiefer is very proud of this year. People are happy to be ending with such creative vigor." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Sophia Bush (One Tree Hill) has been cast in ABC comedy pilot Southern Discomfort, where she will play Haley, described as "a recent Harvard graduate who returns to her Texas hometown to reunite with her old boyfriend." She'll star opposite Don Johnson and Mary Steenburgen in the pilot, which hails from Sony Pictures Television, Tantamount, and ABC Studios. Bush's casting is said to be in second position to her role on the CW's One Tree Hill, which has yet to receive a pickup for another season. (Hollywood Reporter)

Elsewhere, Ben Browder (Stargate SG-1) has joined the cast of the CW's drama pilot presentation Hellcats, where he is set to play football coach Red Irvine. (Deadline.com)

More wrestling is coming to Syfy, following the conclusion of a multi-year deal between cabler Syfy and World Wrestling Entertainment to bring Friday Night Smackdown to the sci-fi channel beginning October 1st. As part of the move, Syfy will shift its traditional Friday night programming block of originals--which includes Caprica, Stargate Universe, and Sanctuary, among others--to Tuesdays. "WWE is the ultimate in imagination-based sports entertainment," said Syfy programming president Dave Howe. "The fantastical thrills of Friday Night SmackDown provide an ideal addition to the Syfy slate, as it targets the younger male and female demographics, which are the fastest-growing categories for WWE." Syfy's current wrestling series, NXT, will wrap up its run in October. (Hollywood Reporter, Variety)

Naren Shankar is said to be leaving CBS' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, stepping down from his role as executive producer/co-showrunner on the procedural drama in order to focus on his development deal with CBS Television Studios. (Deadline.com)

Kevin Eubanks will depart NBC's Tonight Show on May 28th and will be replaced, beginning June 6th, by American Idol's Rickey Minor, the musical competition series' music director. (Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed, Variety)

Looks like Glee star Lea Michele injured her knee while filming an upcoming episode that features the music of Lady Gaga. (Specifically, it was the glee club's take on Gaga's "Bad Romance.") "I'm directing that episode and I did more coverage on that song then we've ever done in the history of the show," co-creator Ryan Murphy tells told E! Online's Kristin Dos Santos. "It's a big number. It's like, big and athletic and hard. And those girls and Chris [Colfer] I think did it for six hours straight." As for Colfer, he too was amazed that he wasn't injured shooting the show-stopping number. "I almost died just trying on my getup," Colfer told Dos Santos. "Literally, I probably almost died because I wear 10-inch heels and those take some getting used to. They're like stilts walking around. They're platform, stick stiletto heels. And I had to dance my ass off in them [laughs.]" (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

In other Glee-related news, FOX has released the Sue Sylvester "Vogue" video from next week's "Power of Madonna" episode of Glee. The video, a shot by shot remake of Madonna's "Vogue," can be seen in its entirety below:


BBC has confirmed that it will not be going ahead with a third season of post-apocalyptic drama series Survivors. "The BBC is committed to making a broad range of varied and ambitious drama, but in order to achieve this we do have to move on from some pieces in order to allow new work to come through," said a BBC spokesperson. "After two series, Survivors will not be returning." (Daily Telegraph)

Deadline.com's Nellie Andreeva is reporting that Wizards of Waverly Place showrunner Peter Murrieta will depart the Disney Channel comedy should it be picked up for a fourth season. (Deadline.com)

Arthur Smith and Kent Weed's reality shingle A. Smith and Co. is developing a reality series based around Aussie magician James Galea and will pitch the project--which mixes comedy, illusion, and sleight of hand--to networks. (Variety)

Looks like Carrie and Co. will be walking in their Manolos over to E! and Style, according to a report by Alex Weprin in Broadcasting & Cable. Comcast Entertainment Group has signed a deal to acquire off-net and ancillary rights to all 94 episodes of HBO's Sex and the City beginning in January 2011. (Broadcasting & Cable)

Warner Bros. Television has hired ICM agent Tom Burke as SVP/head of casting for the studio, where he will oversee all casting both for WBTV and offshoot Warner Horizon. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Not-So New Directions: Glee Returns Tonight

While some viewers swoon for Glee, I've had more of a love-hate relationship with Ryan Murphy's crooner comedy.

There are times when Glee makes me roar with laughter at its often witty and risque dialogue. Laden with innuendo and pop culture savvy, these are volatile bon mots delivered with precision and a killer left hook.

But these moments often serve to remind me that Glee can and should be so much better, they're glimpses into the better series that's buried within Glee should they mine deeper territory, instead of offering a series of saccharine treats.

That's not to say that there aren't moments in the next three episodes of Glee, which returns tonight to the FOX lineup, that aren't genuinely entertaining, because there are. Next week's episode in particular, "The Power of Madonna," might be the best episode of the series to date, focusing as it does on Sue Sylvester and the empowering music of Madge herself.

As a whole, the next three episodes offer a series of high and low points. And when the series hits those high notes, it does so with a terrific sense of accomplishment and joy. There are moments within "The Power of Madonna" that are far funnier and stomach-clenching than most sitcoms these days; the--SPOILER!--shot-by-shot remake of Madonna's "Vogue" music video starring Sue Sylvester is meticulously shot, lovingly produced, and with a nice wink or two thrown in for good measure. The episode, while it has some small flaws, offers a look at how great the series can and should be: the heights that it should attempt to reach and the right mix of sweet and sour, light and dark.

After all, the series thrives when it embraces its own quirky humor. The same episode features a scene between Kurt, Mercedes, and Sue as Kurt offers to help the Cheerios coach with... Well, that would be telling. But suffice it to say that Kurt's line effortlessly sums up the sort of dynamic humor and storytelling that the series should be embracing: "I'm gay, she's black. We make culture." It's a throwaway line but one that should be held onto tightly. I'd rather see some depth and grit here than another iteration of will-they-or-won't they couple Finn and Rachel get it on or break up or get back together.

Which typically happens over the course of a single episode. I've taken the Glee writing staff to task in the past for accelerated storytelling, whereby they rush an entire story arc through a single installment, introducing a plot twist at the beginning and then resolving it by the end of the episode, never to be seen again. There's a fair amount of that going on here, though I do give them credit for bringing up the star-crossed romance between Artie and Tina. But having Kristin Chenoweth's April Rhodes show up out of nowhere in the third episode ("Home") as a roller rink owner, offer the glee club a place to rehearse (which, oddly, they never do), and then depart again by the end of the episode doesn't really serve any story needs.

It's that third episode, jam-packed as it with music (some would say over-stuffed), that really got under my skin. Glee tends to flag when it attempts broadly thematic storytelling, attempting to link everyone's struggles in a single episode to a single theme, here the need to belong, to have a home, a family. From Mercedes to Will, nearly every character in this episode either sings a song (or multiple ones), argues, cries (and, yes, there's a lot of crying here), or just generally waxes about the concept of home. (There's also a really shrill storyline that involves Kurt and Finn and their parents which seems to spring out of nowhere and which definitely rubbed me the wrong way.)

I think you can accomplish thematic-based episodes if you have the foundations for some solid characters, but many of Glee's faces are little more than just that. I don't feel like I know many of these characters better than I did when I first met them thirteen episodes ago. While Finn and Rachel seem to get a lot of air time (along with Will), the rest of the characters still seem to be mostly background players comprised of reductive stereotypes.

But there are some fun moments embedded within these episodes: a showdown between Emma and Terri, Finn and Rachel's mash-up of Madonna's "Borderline" and "Open Your Heart," every second of the "Vogue" video, anything with Sue (especially when she claims her parents were Nazi hunters), the awkwardness of a certain three-person date, the nicely staged "Like a Virgin" montage, the scenes with Idina Menzel, Jonathan Groff's involvement, and most of "The Power of Madonna" as a whole, the strongest episode of the three.

And there's some new competition for Jane Lynch's Sue Sylvester (who brings her A-game to every scene she's in) in the form of airheaded Cheerio Brittany, who is now getting some of the funniest lines in the entire show (look for the scene where Jonathan Groff's Jesse St. James is introduced by Will) and providing some much needed humor to some highly repetitive rehearsal scenes. These two, particularly together, could be a combustive force of comedy.

All in all, these next three episodes of Glee offer some fine moments and some not-so-fine ones. I had been hoping that the back nine episodes of Glee would have proven to be an improvement on the thirteen that came before but my ultimate feeling is this: you either love the series already or you don't. But if the writers want to built a long-term franchise rather than just a flash in the pan, they need to look towards constructing longer arcs, deepening the characters, and finding a tone that's consistent rather than all over the place. For a series that's meant to be as diverse and progressive as Glee, it still can feel awfully directionless.

Glee returns tonight at a special time of 9:28 pm ET/PT on FOX.

Channel Surfing: "24" to End, Kiefer Sutherland Speaks, ChloeGate at "Big Love," Elizabeth Mitchell Talks "V" Return, and More

Welcome to your Monday morning television briefing.

It's official: the clock has run out on FOX's serialized drama series 24. On Friday, FOX announced that Day Eight of 24 would be the series' last, with a two-hour series finale planned for Monday, May 24th. "This has been the role of a lifetime, and I will never be able to fully express my appreciation to everyone who made it possible," said Kiefer Sutherland in a statement. "While the end of the series is bittersweet, we always wanted 24 to finish on a high note, so the decision to make the eighth season our last was one we all agreed upon. This feels like the culmination of all our efforts from the writers to the actors to our fantastic crew and everyone at Fox. Looking ahead to the future, Howard Gordon and I are excited about the opportunity to create the feature film version of 24. But when all is said and done, it is the loyal worldwide fan base that made it possible for me to have the experience of playing the role of Jack Bauer, and for that I am eternally grateful." By the time that 24 ends its run in May, the 20th Century Fox Television-produced series will have aired 194 episodes, earning it a spot among the longest running action series on television. (via press release)

Los Angeles Times' Denise Martin and Maria Elena Fernandez, meanwhile, had interviews with Kiefer Sutherland and executive producer Howard Gordon about the 24 cancellation. "Everyone concurs that we want the show to end as close to peak form as possible," Gordon told the LA Times."If they said tomorrow that you have a ninth season, it's not something we'd be up for because we realize Jack's story in the real-time format has been told. Jack is a wonderful character who can live past the 24 real-time franchise. As far as doing this high wire act...this is far as we can take it." Fans can take comfort in that the final episodes are leading up to a heart-stopping finale. "What I do like about the ending and what I can say about it is that it's very definitive about where Jack is going to end up," said Sutherland. "It can be perceived as a cliffhanger on some level, but there's no questioning his options. That's something we've never been able to do in the context of this series." (Los Angeles Times' Show Tracker)

Elsewhere, Variety's Michael Schneider has a Q&A with Sutherland. "Billy Ray is in the process of writing it right now," said Sutherland about the 24 feature film. "I'm very excited about the idea. He's a fantastic writer. I know he's been working with Howard recently. I'm very excited about the opportunity, and singularly because it's a two-hour representation of a 24-hour day. So for the first time, it will be very feasible in this 24 hours to go from England to Russia, or from China to Japan, depending on where they choose to set it. Before on the TV show, the crisis had to come to us, because the best we could do was get across town. And the two times we ever put Jack Bauer in a plane, it just didn't work." While, across town, the Hollywood Reporter's James Hibberd offered a Q&A with executive producer Goward Gordon, who said the film could be released "as early as next year depending on how things come together." (Variety, Hollywood Reporter)

And The New York Times' Mike Hale takes a look at whether 24 was a victim of its own success... and its reliable formatting: "It’s essentially a superhero cartoon with a topical overlay, a cartoon that was well done from the start but was so rigidly formatted that it had no way to grow... It was the demands of the format that doomed the show (though eight seasons is nothing to cry about). Repetition set in early, there was a limited stock of villains and it was impossible to up the ante on destructive threats, or absurdly byzantine conspiracies, year after year." (New York Times)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello had an interview with Big Love's Chloe Sevigny, in which the Golden Globe winner expressed regret for her comments about the HBO drama series' fourth season, which she had called "awful" in a recent interview. "I feel pretty terrible," Sevigny told Ausiello. "I feel like what I said was taken out of context, and the [reporter] I was speaking to was provoking me. I was in Austin [at the SXSW festival] and really exhausted and doing a press junket and I think I just… I wasn’t thinking about what I was saying. You know, after a day of junkets sometimes things slip out that you don’t mean, and I obviously didn’t mean what I said in any way, shape, or form. I love being on the show. I have nothing but respect and admiration for our writers and everybody involved with the show. It’s been the greatest opportunity of my lifetime so far — the best role I’ve ever played, the best part I’ve ever had the opportunity to portray. So I love the show. I think it’s the greatest show on television. I think it’s the weirdest show. I think it is very complex and the content is amazing and it’s just very ironic that this statement would come out and blow so out of control. Because I feel absolutely the opposite. It is difficult being on a show for several seasons and having no control and having things go in different directions where you didn’t think they would go. But that’s also the most exciting part [because] they keep the character really fresh and there’s new scenarios that they come up with." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

[Editor: The Onion's A.V. Club writer Sean O'Neil, meanwhile, hit back at Sevigny, issuing audio from the interview itself, which can be heard here.]

TVGuide.com's Natalie Abrams has an interview with V's Elizabeth Mitchell about what's coming up on the ABC sci-fi series when it returns tomorrow and hints that Erica will have a lot of violence in her future. "I think as long as her son is safe, she's kind of cool as far as all the stuff with Tyler goes," said Mitchell. "She really didn't seem to mind too much that he had a girl in [his room]. She just wants him to be physically safe and he's not obviously. He's in great jeopardy; she just doesn't know it yet. Hopefully, she will be finding out more and more. Obviously, that will lead to a great deal of violence." (TVGuide.com)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Mayim Bialik (The Secret Life of the American Teenager) will guest star--and possibly recur--on CBS' The Big Bang Theory, where she will play a love interest for Jim Parson's Sheldon, whom he meets on an online matchmaking site and is described as "the female version of Jim Parson's theoretical physicist." She's set to appear in the season finale, which airs May 24th, and could return next season. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Pilot casting updates: Christine Woods (FlashForward) has landed the female lead in NBC comedy pilot Perfect Couples; Teri Polo (The Wedding Bells) has joined the cast of TBS' hour-long period comedy pilot Glory Daze; Jason Wiles (Persons Unknown) has been cast in ABC drama pilot Boston's Finest; Jayne Houdyshell (Conviction) and Joe Nunez (Prison Break) will star opposite Will Arnett and Keri Russell in Mitch Hurwitz and Arnett's FOX comedy pilot Wilde Kingdom; Vinnie Jones (Chuck) has been cast in a potential recurring role in NBC vigilante drama pilot The Cape (also cast: Ryan Wynott and Martin Klebba); Gabriel Morales (The Perfect Game) has come on board ABC comedy pilot It Takes a Village; Tessa Thompson (Veronica Mars) has joined the cast of supernatural drama Betwixt; Amber Seyer has been cast in Amy Sherman-Palladino's untitled Wyoming drama project; Gabriella Wright (The Tudors) has landed a role in espionage drama Nomads; and Matt Barr (Harper's Island) has been cast in drama pilot Hellcats. (Hollywood Reporter)

David James Elliot (JAG) has replaced Desperate Housewives' Neal McDonough in ABC drama series Scoundrels, which launches in June. No immediate reason was given for McDonough's departure from the series, which is based on Kiwi drama series Outrageous Fortune. (Futon Critic)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that former ER star Eriq La Salle has been cast in the final two episodes of FOX's 24, where he will play "the charming and regal UN Secretary General." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Fresh off his season-long arc on FX's Damages, Martin Short has signed on to star opposite David Krumholtz's on FOX comedy pilot Tax Man, in which he'll play Mike Babbit, the IRS Fresno office's obnoxiously loud boss. (Hollywood Reporter)

ABC has finally announced a launch date for the Alyssa Milano-led romantic comedy Romantically Challenged, which will launch April 12th at 9:30 pm ET/PT, right after a 90-minute installment of Dancing with the Stars. Six episodes have been completed of the series, which was created by Ricky Blitt. Elsewhere, FOX announced that Glee will return on April 13th at 9:28 pm ET/PT, following an episode of American Idol. (Variety)

FOX has ordered a pilot for an untitled Jamie Foxx-created sketch comedy show that will be executive produced by MadTV's Fax Bahr and Adam Small and will star Affion Crockett. Project hails from Fox Television Studios and Sony Pictures Television-based Tantamount. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Alan Cumming Upped to Regular on "Good Wife," "Scrubs" Dead, Jane Lynch Talks "Glee," More "Ricky Gervais Show," "Big Love," and More

Welcome your Wednesday morning television briefing.

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Alan Cumming has been promoted to series regular on Season Two of CBS' The Good Wife. Cumming, who joined the cast of the legal drama last month, will reprise his role as Eli Gold (described as "a sharp-tongued reputation rehabilitator working with Chris Noth’s disgraced politician") as a series regular next season. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Looks like Scrubs is done. At least according to former series star Zach Braff, who posted a message on Facebook indicating that the ABC medical comedy series would not be resuscitated next season. "Many of you have asked, so here it is," wrote Braff. "It appears that New Scrubs, Scrubs 2.0, Scrubs with new kids, Scrubbier, Scrubs without JD is no more. It was worth a try, but alas... it didn't work." ABC refused to comment on the possible cancellation, though series creator Bill Lawrence told E! Online's Megan Masters that Scrubs "hasn't been canceled [but], we're all just assuming it's over." (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

TVGuide.com's Natalie Abrams interviews Jane Lynch about what's coming up on FOX's musical-comedy series Glee. "She's just always trying to hurt somebody," Lynch said of Sue Sylvester. "She always has a moment of "I will get that glee club." It's more of the same, but I think she's a little more desperate. Mercedes [Amber Riley] and Kurt [Chris Colfer] defect and come over to the cheerios; they stay on glee, but I give them solos, so they prefer me. I'm trying to break it up anyway I can." (TVGuide.com)

Could it be that Karl Pilkington's round head has bowled over executives at HBO? The pay cabler has ordered a second season of animated comedy The Ricky Gervais Show, set to air next year. "With this second series we would have already done as many episodes as The Office and Extras put together," said Gervais. "This can run and run as long as Karl remains a global village idiot." UK residents, take note: Channel 4 will launch the series on April 23rd. (Hollywood Reporter, BBC News)

The Onion's A.V. Club has a new interview with Big Love's Chloe Sevigny, where she slams the HBO drama series' latest season. "It was awful this season, as far as I’m concerned," Sevigny told A.V. Club. "I’m not allowed to say that! [Gasps.] It was very telenovela. I feel like it kind of got away from itself. The whole political campaign seemed to me very far-fetched. I mean, I love the show, I love my character, I love the writing, but I felt like they were really pushing it this last season. And with nine episodes, I think they were just squishing too much in. HBO only gave us nine Sundays, because they have so much other original programming—especially with The Pacific—and they only have a certain amount of Sundays per year, so we only got nine Sundays. I think that they had more story than episodes. I think that’s what happened." (The Onion's A.V. Club)

Kevin Kline will star in an untitled HBO drama pilot about a disgraced doctor who emerges from prison after serving a fifteen-year sentence for murdering his mistress and attempts to get his life back on track. Project will be written by David Auburn, who will executive produce with Klein, Gavin Polone, and Judy Hofflund. (Variety)

Pilot casting update: Jennifer Beals (Lie to Me) will star opposite Jason Clarke in Shawn Ryan's FOX cop drama pilot Ride-along, where she will play Teresa Colvin, Chicago's first female police chief; John Larroquette (Boston Legal) will star opposite Jason Isaacs in FOX legal drama pilot Pleading Guilty, will play a managing partner at the firm where Isaac's Mack--a former cop turned lawyer--works; and Keith David (Death at a Furneral) will star opposite David Lyons in Tom Wheeler's NBC vigilante drama pilot The Cape, where he will play a criminal mastermind who becomes the mentor to Lyon's Vince. (Hollywood Reporter)

IFC has announced that it has ordered ten half-hour episodes of Onion News Network, which it will launch in early 2011, as well as comedy-mystery series Death Comes to Town, featuring the Kids in the Hall comedy troupe. Network also announced that it had acquired the five-episode British zombie horror-comedy Dead Set, written by Charlie Brooker, that will launch in October and will launch its co-produced comedy The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret, which stars Will Arnett and David Cross, this fall. (Variety)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Judy Greer (Archer) will guest star in an upcoming episode of CBS' The Big Bang Theory, where she will play a famous physicist who spends the night at Sheldon's apartment. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage's Fake Empire has its first employee as Warner Bros. Television executive Leonard Goldstein has been hired as the head of television for the new WBTV-based shingle. Goldstein will remain with the studio until the end of pilot season, at which time he'll move to Fake Empire full-time. "He's one of the few people who can give me bad news or big notes, and I still like him," Schwartz told Variety. "I floated the idea (of partnering) a few years ago, but it's all about timing. He knew what Stephanie and I had planned, and the timing was finally right." (Hollywood Reporter, Variety)

NBC is said to be developing a flash mob reality competition series with 3 Ball Entertainment, who are themselves in talks with Paula Abdul and Kenny Ortega. But don't assume this is a standard flash mob show. "This is way beyond that," a source told The Wrap's Josef Adalian. "This is enormous dance performance, far beyond what you'd expect to be able to do on television." (The Wrap's TVMoJoe, Variety)

ABC has ordered roughly seven or eight episodes of reality medical series Boston Med, which will feature the staffers and patients of three different hospitals in Boston. Series, which features the first televised face transplants, will air this summer and is expected to be given Grey's Anatomy's Thursdays at 9 pm ET/PT timeslot. (Variety)

TV Guide Magazine's Will Keck is reporting that Vampire Diaries fans will be able to get a teaser for future plotlines by making a phone call to a mysterious number, the same number that will appear on screen this week on Thursday evening's episode. (TV Guide Magazine)

FOX has confirmed that comedy series 'Til Death will not be returning for a fifth season. (Variety)

RDF USA has restructured its West Coast office under inbound chief creative officer Natalka Znak, with development and current programming duties being split among executives. Claire O'Donohoe will serve as EVP of current while Mike Duffy will handle development as EVP, with both reporting into Znak. (Variety)

In other executive news, Gordon Ramsay has opened a Santa Monica office for his One Potato Two Potato production company, which will be headed up by Adelina Ramage Rooney. The company's first US project will be FOX's upcoming Master Chef, which it co-produces with Reveille and Shine. (Variety)

Finally, Sue Norton has been hired as SVP of television for Lonely Planet at BBC Worldwide Prods. She's been tasked with broadening the presence of Lonely Planet on television and digital platforms. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

The Daily Beast: "15 Reasons to Watch TV This Spring"

Looking for something to watch this spring?

Head over to The Daily Beast, where you can read my latest piece, "15 Reasons to Watch TV This Spring," where I round up fifteen new and returning series airing this spring--from Doctor Who, V, Nurse Jackie, and Fringe to Treme, Peep Show, and Top Chef Masters, among others--as well as some major events like the end of ABC's Lost in May.

What are you most looking forward to this spring and what's caught your fancy as your latest television obsession? Head to the comments section to discuss.

Channel Surfing: Michael Trucco to "Castle," More "Doctor Who" on Tap, Nestor Carbonell Talks "Lost," Skeet Ulrich Returns to CBS, "24," and More

Welcome to your Friday morning television briefing.

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Battlestar Galactica's Michael Trucco--next seen on ABC's V this spring--hs signed on for a multiple-episode story arc on ABC's Castle. Trucco will play a new love interest for Stana Katic's Beckett in the final four episodes of this season and is described as a "charismatic cop in the homicide division." Ausiello also indicates that, if the character clicks with the audience, he could return next season. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

BBC has ordered a sixth season of sci-fi series Doctor Who, which will once again feature Matt Smith as the Eleventh Doctor. The broadcaster confirmed that Smith will return for Season Six of Doctor Who and that a Christmas special, written by new head writer/executive producer Steven Moffat, is on tap for this winter. (Broadcast)

TVGuide.com's Natalie Abrams talks with Lost's Nestor Carbonell, slated to get his own Richard-centric episode of the ABC drama series on Tuesday. In a video interview, she asks him whether Richard Alpert will team up with Ben, whether the Man in Black can really be trusted, and more. (TVGuide.com)

Skeet Ulrich (Jericho) is headed back to CBS, this time set to star in the network's untitled Hannah Shakespeare medical drama pilot, about a medical team that travels the country helping the less fortunate. Ulrich will play Billy Jost, described as "a Harvard-educated brilliant cardiologist with rock star looks who embraces the tumult of frequent volunteer missions to escape the hell of his personal life" who is "still in love with his ex-wife, now a hopeless junkie, and is holding out hope that she may clean up and come back to him and their six-year-old daughter." He joins a cast that includes Amy Smart, Janeane Garofalo, Rachelle Lefevre, Jay Hernandez, and Michael Beach. (Hollywood Reporter)

Looks like these are indeed the end times for FOX's 24, according to Entertainment Weekly's Lynette Rice, citing a recent casting call for the 20th Century Fox Television-produced drama series, which read, "These are the final episodes, so if some of your name people would like to do something on the show, this is the time for them to do it." [Editor: that sure seems final to me.] (Entertainment Weekly's Hollywood Insider)

Beau Bridges (My Name is Earl) has been cast opposite Dermot Mulroney in NBC drama pilot Rockford Files, which is being overseen by House creator David Shore. Bridges will play Rocky, father to Mulroney's Jim Rockford, who is described as "a truck driver for thirty years who always helps his son in a tough situation, though he tends to offer a commentary that Jim doesn't always appreciate." (Hollywood Reporter)

In other casting news, Ashley Tisdale (High School Musical) has signed on to star opposite Aly Michalka in the CW drama pilot Hellcats, where she will play Sierra, described as "the peppy and fiercely intense captain of the Hellcats who, after an initial clash with Marti, her new roommate, realizes that she just might be the godsend the Hellcats need to win the championship." (Hollywood Reporter)

The Wrap's Josef Adalian explores why viewing figures have fallen off so sharply for once mighty tentpole series... and why no new series have risen up to take over for them. (The Wrap's TVMoJoe)

TV Guide Magazine's Will Keck is reporting that Jesse Williams will be returning to ABC's Grey's Anatomy, where he will be reprising his role as Jackson Avery during the 2010-11 season. (TV Guide Magazine)

Oprah Winfrey's April 7th episode will feature the cast of Glee as Winfrey interviews the cast and co-creator Ryan Murphy. The episode will also feature backstage videos and a musical performance from the cast, who are slated to appear at the White House the day before. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Sayonara, CNN. Longtime cable news network correspondent Christiane Amanpour is heading to ABC, where she will join the network's This Week as anchor beginning in August. (Variety)

Sarah Palin's Alaska is inching its way closer to reality, with A&E and Discovery Communications said to be interested in acquiring the rights to Palin's reality series, which is executive produced by Mark Burnett. (Hollywood Reporter)

Modern Family's Sofia Vergara wants Italian icon Sophia Loren to play her mother on the ABC comedy series. "My mother should be Sophia Loren, don’t you think?" Vergara told TV Guide Magazine's Will Keck. "She would be perfect. I met her for the first time at the Golden Globes this year. I arrived to rehearse the day before and we ended up waiting together backstage. I was dying. I thought I was going to have a heart attack. I couldn’t say anything." (TV Guide Magazine)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that How I Met Your Mother producers are looking to cast an actress to play a TV-movie actress who is herself playing Sarah Chalke's Stella. "Recall last May’s 'As Fast As She Can,' where Future Ted told us what happened to the woman who left him at the altar: She and Tony (Jason Jones) moved to California, where Tony wrote a hit movie The Wedding Bride," writes Ausiello. "Well, that hit movie is coming to the Mother ship — and Ted is not going to be thrilled with how he comes off." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Lucy Gaskell (Being Human) has been cast in BBC One medical drama Casuality, where she will play Kirsty Clements, a mental health nurse who "brings a breath of fresh air--and a bucket of attitude--to Casualty's beleaguered emergency department." (BBC)

CBS Television Studios has hired former FOX current programming executive Beth Miyares as VP of drama development. She will report to Julie McNamara. (Variety)

Cabler VH1 has promoted both Noah Pollack and Kristen Kelly to VP, series development and original programming, where they will jointly develop unscripted programming for the network. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Heigl to Leave "Grey's Anatomy," "Skins" Refreshes Cast Again, Tudyk Gets "Rockford" Gig, "Doctor Who" May Get Wii Game, and More

Welcome to your Friday morning television briefing.

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Katherine Heigl will be departing Grey's Anatomy for good this time, citing unnamed sources. "Series creator Shonda Rhimes has agreed to release the fast-rising movie star from her contract. It’s now up to ABC Studios and Heigl’s reps to hash out a final exit agreement," writes Ausiello. "After taking more than half of the current season off to make another movie and connect with her adopted daughter, Heigl was scheduled to return to the Grey’s set on March 1 to begin work on the five remaining episodes of the season. There’s just one problem: March 1 came and went and there was no Heigl." Long story, short: Heigl's final episode as Izzie has already aired and Heigl will not be returning to the set of Grey's Anatomy. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

UK network E4 has commissioned two additional seasons of teen drama Skins, the series' fifth and sixth, and has announced that it will once again replace the cast with new actors following the fourth season (which wraps up in the UK next week but has yet to air Stateside) and will hold open auditions next month. "Skins has always been about new talent, both on and off screen, and the decision to recast the series every two years is one of the reasons Skins stands out," said Channel 4's head of drama Camilla Campbell. "Now another group of teenagers will have the rare opportunity to be part of a British drama series that says something about their lives and is one of the most exciting shows on television. I can't wait to find out who they will be." (BBC News)

Alan Tudyk (V, Dollhouse, Firefly) will star opposite Dermot Mulroney in NBC drama pilot Rockford Files, an update of the 1970 private investigator series that is written by by David Shore (House). Tudyk will play Detective Dennis Becker, a friend of Jim Rockford (Mulroney) who is said to be a little embarrassed by his friendship with Rockford as the other cops all hate him. (Hollywood Reporter)

Take with a large grain of salt. British tabloid The Sun is reporting that Nintendo has signed a contract with BBC Worldwide to bring its iconic series Doctor Who to Wii and DS consoles later this year. "This has been in the pipeline for years," said an unnamed insider quoted by the paper. "We're delighted to have finally nailed down a deal. We went with Nintendo as they have huge appeal for families and Doctor Who is very much a family brand. The Wii console is key for us as it's something families play together." [Editor: Don't get excited just yet. I'd be extremely surprised if a game were able to be produced by this Christmas, just nine months away, as The Sun contends, should this actually be true.] (via Digital Spy)

Jon Voight (24) has signed on as one of the leads in FOX drama pilot Midland, where he will play a Texas oil tycoon described as "a gravely voiced titan equally at home in boots or a three-piece suit." Move marks the first TV series regular role for Voight. Also cast in the 20th Century Fox Television-produced pilot: David Keith (The Class), who will play the con-man father of Jimmy Wolk's Bob. (Hollywood Reporter)

Glee Live! In Concert! has added two additional performances for both the Los Angeles and New York City stops, with a matinee planned for each city. Los Angeles will get a matinee performance and an evening performance on May 22nd while New York City gets a matinee on May 29th and an evening show on May 30th. (via press release)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Arianna Huffington will guest star as herself on the May 10th episode of CBS' How I Met Your Mother. "Huffington will be a guest at a high-falutin’ New York party that Ted, Barney, Marshall, and Lily find themselves at," writes Ausiello. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

TV Guide Magazine's Will Keck is reporting that Jennifer Morrison will be returning to FOX's House, on April 12th episode directed by Hugh Laurie... and next season. "There have been discussions of me doing a few episodes next year based on what they end up writing," Morrison told Keck. "Contractually, they’ve guaranteed me a certain number of episodes next year - I think three or four, which means that they’re probably very much leaning toward writing a storyline for the character." (
TV Guide Magazine)

Constance Zimmer (Entourage) and Kat Foster ('Til Death) have been cast in TBS hour-long comedy pilot In Security, which centers on two sisters who inherit their father's private-security firm. The attachment of Zimmer and Foster lifts the casting contingency on the pilot. Elsewhere at TBS, Malcolm McDowell will star opposite Breckin Meyer and Mark-Paul Gosselaar in comedy pilot Franklin & Bash, where he will play the senior partner at the law firm where street lawyers Jared (Meyer) and Steven (Gosselaar) are hired. (Hollywood Reporter)

In other pilot casting news, Patrick J. Adams (Weather Girl) and Danneel Harris (One Tree Hill) have been cast as the leads in NBC comedy pilot Friends With Benefits, about a group of friends who are looking for love but settle for something else in the meantime. Adams will play Ben, described as "an Everyman who, while waiting for Ms. Perfect to come along, enjoys a relationship with Sara (Harris), a doctor trying to find Mr. Right." They join the already cast Fran Kranz in the 20th Century Fox Television-produced comedy pilot, written by Michael Weber and Scott Neustadter and directed by David Dobkin. (Hollywood Reporter)

TV Guide Magazine's Will Keck has a first look at how Betty Suarez (America Ferrera) will get her braces off on Ugly Betty's March 24th episode. Hint, it involves a million-dollar bra, the Guggenheim Museum, and a collision. "I chipped my front tooth rehearsing this scene - and it hurt!" Ferrera told Keck. "I thought how incredibly ironic that I mess up my tooth in the episode where Betty's smile is supposed to be perfect and there are extreme close-ups of my mouth." (TV Guide Magazine)

VH1 has ordered ten episodes of docudrama The Tournament, which will follow Chad Ochocinco as he travels the country to find love with 85 women who will compete for his affects "via a March Madness bracket." Series, slated to launch in July, is from JUMA Entertainment and 51 Minds Entertainment. (Variety)

Production has begun on BBC One's three-part drama Sherlock, a modern-day update of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's iconic detective Sherlock Holmes, from writers/executive producers Steve Moffat, Mark Gatiss, and Steve Thompson, directors Euros Lyn and Paul McGuigan. Project stars Benedict Cumberbatch, Martin Freeman, and Rupert Graves. "Everything that matters about Holmes and Watson is the same," said Moffat. "Conan Doyle's stories were never about frock coats and gas light; they're about brilliant detection, dreadful villains and blood-curdling crimes – and frankly, to hell with the crinoline. Other detectives have cases, Sherlock Holmes has adventures, and that's what matters. Mark and I have been talking about this project for years, on long train rides to Cardiff for Doctor Who. Quite honestly, we'd still be talking about it if Sue Vertue of Hartswood Films (conveniently also my wife) hadn't sat us down for lunch and got us to work." (BBC)

Radical Media, the production company behind Sundance Channel's Iconoclasts, is said to be gearing up for more television development, including a docusoap following the dancers of the Miami City Ballet, the Oprah Winfrey-hosted Masterclass, and a series adaptation of Stephen Dubner and Steve Levitt's best-selling nonfiction book Freakonomics, which would "investigate a wide range of topics: from the inner workings of a crack gang to whether walking drunk is more dangerous than driving drunk." Project is currently being shopped to networks. (Variety)

The Wrap's Josef Adalian is reporting yet more changes afoot in the executive roster at Oprah Winfrey and Discovery Communications' nascent cable network OWN, with Jamila Hunter stepping down from her position as head of programming to segue into a new role at the network. Programming will now be overseen by three new hires: Rod Aissa, Michele Dix, and Drew Tappon, all of whom will report to COO Lisa Erspamer. (The Wrap's TVMoJoe)

Nickelodeon ordered six new series, including musical Victorious, featuring former Zoey 101 co-star Victoria Justice, and renewed 16 series, from iCarly to SpongeBob SquarePants. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.

Neil Patrick Harris: "Glee" Club Survivor?

More information is trickling out about Neil Patrick Harris' upcoming guest turn on FOX's musical-comedy Glee this May.

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Harris will play Bryan Adam, a former glee glee club nemesis of Matthew Morrison's Will, who is now as a William McKinley High board member in the episode, to be directed by Buffy creator Joss Whedon.

Citing an unnamed Glee insider, Ausiello goes on to report that the high school feud between Harris' Bryan Adam and Morrison's Will will be depicted via flashbacks which will show the two as rivals for solos and girls as teenagers... and that animosity has carried over into adulthood, where Bryan is now looking to cut the arts program.

"Show choir ruined his life, made him feel he could be a star, but all he could do is book Carnival cruises,” the unnamed Glee insider told Ausiello. "Now he wants vengeance."

I'm happy to add some further details to Ausiello's report as it now seems as though Harris' Bryan Adams is in a glee club survivors support group that will also be populated by Molly Shannon's character.

The word comes from the most recent casting breakdown for Glee, which is looking to cast a new character, "Russell" as one-day guest star with the potential to recur on the 20th Century Fox Television-produced series:

"[RUSSELL] Late 30s-40s. He is a member of a "Glee Club Survivors" support group which includes other members Neil Patrick Harris and Molly Shannon. PLEASE SUBMIT "NAME" as well as "NON-NAME" actors...ONE-DAY GUEST STAR (POSSIBLY RECURRING)"

Which makes me wonder: just who else is part of this support group cabal? And are they all plotting the demise of McKinney's Glee Club?

Glee is set to return April 13th at 9 pm ET/PT on FOX.

Don't Stop Believin': "Glee" Tour Dates Announced

Get your matching ensembles ready.

FOX has officially announced dates for the live stage tour of musical-comedy Glee, set to begin Wednesday, May 18th in Phoenix.

The 2010 Glee Live! In Concert! tour will take the cast from Phoenix to Los Angeles and Chicago, before wrapping up the tour with two performances at Radio City Music Hall in New York City on May 28th and 29th. It will feature the ensemble cast performing some of the series' musical numbers including “Don’t Stop Believin,” “Somebody To Love," “Jump,” “Don’t Rain on My Parade,” and “Sweet Caroline.”

"The response of the fans to our little show has been so immediate and so gratifying, we wanted to get out and thank them live and in person," said series co-creator Ryan Murphy in a statement. "And what show lends itself more to a concert than Glee? We can’t wait to take this show on the road and the actors couldn’t be more excited to perform live for audiences in these four cities."

The full schedule of the four-city tour, with dates and venues:

May 18 Phoenix, AZ Dodge Theatre
May 20 Los Angeles, CA Gibson Amphitheatre
May 21 Los Angeles, CA Gibson Amphitheatre
May 25 Chicago, IL Rosemont Theatre
May 26 Chicago, IL Rosemont Theatre
May 28 New York City, NY Radio City Music Hall
May 29 New York City, NY Radio City Music Hall

Select tickets will be available to American Express cardholders during a pre-sale period beginning March 5. Tickets for the general public will be offered beginning Friday, March 12 at 10 am for the Phoenix show and Saturday, March 13th at 9 am for the New York shows and 10 am for the Chicago and Los Angeles dates.

The full press release from FOX can be found below.

GLEE
LIVE! IN CONCERT!

THE CAST OF FOX’S SMASH SHOW “GLEE” HITS THE STAGE
IN NEW YORK, LOS ANGELES, PHOENIX AND CHICAGO THIS MAY
Special Presale To American Express Cardmembers Starts March 5; Tickets Go On Sale To General Public Friday, March 12 for the Phoenix Date and Saturday, March 13 for Los Angeles, New York & Chicago

In an unprecedented live event, Twentieth Century Fox Television and “Glee” co-creator Ryan Murphy are bringing the hit television show to concert stages this spring.

Beginning Wednesday, May 18 at the Dodge Theatre in Phoenix, Arizona, “Glee” stars Lea Michele (Rachel), Cory Monteith (Finn), Amber Riley (Mercedes), Chris Colfer (Kurt), Kevin McHale (Artie), Jenna Ushkowitz (Tina), Mark Salling (Puck), Dianna Agron (Quinn), Naya Rivera (Santana), Heather Morris (Brittany), Harry Shum, Jr. (Mike) and Dijon Talton (Matt) will perform in a singing and dancing celebration of the Golden Globe Award winning show.

The four-city exclusive engagement, “Glee Live! In Concert!,” is a unique concert experience conceived by Murphy that will include live performances of some of the show’s most memorable musical numbers including its anthem “Don’t Stop Believin,” fan favorites “Somebody To Love” and “Jump” and hits “Don’t Rain on My Parade” and “Sweet Caroline.”

“The response of the fans to our little show has been so immediate and so gratifying, we wanted to get out and thank them live and in person,” commented Murphy. “And what show lends itself more to a concert than ‘Glee?’ We can’t wait to take this show on the road and the actors couldn’t be more excited to perform live for audiences in these four cities.”

“This has been such an extraordinary year for ‘Glee’ and I can’t think of a better way to finish up the first season than performing live on stage with the cast,” commented Michele, a Broadway veteran. Added Monteith, “This show has changed my life in so many ways. If you had told me a year ago that I’d be performing classic rock songs in concert theaters around the country, I would never have believed you. We are psyched!”

2010 Glee Live! In Concert! dates:
May 18 Phoenix, AZ Dodge Theatre
May 20 Los Angeles, CA Gibson Amphitheatre
May 21 Los Angeles, CA Gibson Amphitheatre
May 25 Chicago, IL Rosemont Theatre
May 26 Chicago, IL Rosemont Theatre
May 28 New York City, NY Radio City Music Hall
May 29 New York City, NY Radio City Music Hall

Select tickets will be available to American Express cardholders in an exclusive pre-sale beginning March 5; tickets go on sale to the general public Friday, March 12 at 10 a.m. for the concert in Phoenix, and Saturday, March 13 at 9:00 AM for the concerts in N.Y.C. and 10:00 AM for L.A. and Chicago. Tickets will be available via www.ticketmaster.com or by phone at (800) 745-3000 or at any Ticketmaster Outlet. Tickets will be available at the Dodge Theatre, Gibson Amphitheater and Rosemont Horizon Theatre box offices as well. Ticket prices range from $89.50-$39.50. “Glee Live! In Concert!” has also teamed with I Love All Access to provide a variety of fan ticket packages for the show, including premium seats, parties and more. For more information, please visit “Glee” at www.gleetour2010.com

“Glee” returns with a host of new episodes on Tuesday, April 13 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) and the cast will begin production on Season Two of “Glee” following the tour. The show boasts winning ratings, critical acclaim, a rabid fan base of “GLEEks,” two certified Gold albums and more than 4 million song downloads. GLEE has won a Golden Globe for Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy; a Screen Actors Guild award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series and a People’s Choice Award for Favorite New TV Comedy. The series has received two Directors Guild of America Award nominations; a Writers Guild of America nomination for Best Comedy Series and Best New Series and the American Film Institute named “Glee” one of the Top 10 TV Programs of the Year.

“Glee” is produced by Ryan Murphy Television in association with 20th Century Fox Television. Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Ian Brennan are co-creators of the series. Murphy, Falchuk and Dante Di Loreto serve as executive producers, while Ian Brennan serves as co-executive producer.

Channel Surfing: FX Renews "Archer," Team Darlton on "Lost" Partnership, Hiroyuki Sanada Speaks, Jim Belushi Suits Up for "Defenders," and More

Welcome to your Tuesday morning television briefing.

"Danger zone!" FX has ordered a second season of its animated action-comedy Archer, from creators Adam Reed and Matthew Thompson. The cabler has commissioned 13 episodes for the series' second season, which is set to launch next year. The order is up from the seven installments that comprised Season One of Archer. [Editor: while Archer started off rocky and is somewhat hit-or-miss, I'm actually quite enjoying its off-kilter madcap action now that the season is set to wrap in a few weeks' time.] (Variety)

The Los Angeles Times' Maria Elena Fernandez talks to Lost showrunners Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse about their partnership on the show. And thanks to a video interview, you can get the words from Team Darlton themselves as they recount the events back in 2004 that lead to the duo forming one of Hollywood's strongest creative partnerships. (Los Angeles Times' Show Tracker)

SPOILER! Meanwhile, TV Guide Magazine's Will Keck has an interview with Lost's Hiroyuki Sanada, who plays the mysterious temple master Dogen on the ABC drama series' final season. Look for the March 2nd episode to reveal more about Dogen's past. "I believe Dogen and Sayid will experience some kind of friendship in the end," Hiro told Keck. "Temples are built for peace and saving people." Hmmm... (TV Guide Magazine)

No, it's not a joke: former According to Jim star Jim Belushi has landed one of the lead roles in CBS legal drama pilot The Defenders, from writers/executive producers Niels Mueller and Kevin Kennedy and director David Guggenheim. Belushi will play Nick, described as "as Las Vegas attorney with marital and drinking issues." (Variety)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that the cast of FOX's Glee will perform at the White House Easter Egg Roll on April 5th, after being invited by First Lady Michelle Obama. "Rumor has it Mrs. O and her daughters are big fans of the show," writes Ausiello. "And since a White House gig is an offer that’s pretty darn hard to refuse, Glee’s producers did some lickety-split schedule rejiggering in order to honor the request." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

PBS' Masterpiece has signed a co-production deal with BBC Worldwide that will encompass several international co-productions, including a new production of period drama Upstairs, Downstairs, Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss' Sherlock--starring Benedict Cumberbatch, Martin Freeman, and Rupert Graves--and three mysteries based on Michael Dibden's Aurelio Zen novels starring Rufus Sewell. (Televisionary)

Pilot casting roundup: Jane Kaczmarek (Raising the Bar) and Adam Arkin (Life) have been cast in ABC comedy pilot Who Gets the Parents? (Also cast: Greek's Andrew West and Men in Trees' Derek Richardson); Leah Remini (The King of Queens) has landed a lead in ABC comedy pilot It Takes a Village; Zeljko Ivanek (Big Love) and Ian Anthony Dale (Taken) have joined the cast of NBC drama pilot The Event; Ben Koldyke (Big Love) has snagged the lead in NBC comedy pilot This Little Piggy; Romany Malco (Weeds) has been cast in ABC superhero drama pilot No Ordinary Family; Wayne Knight (Seinfeld) has been added to the cast of Ant Hines and Larry Charles' untitled CBS comedy pilot presentation; Olivia Munn (Attack of the Show) will star in NBC comedy pilot Perfect Couples; D.J. Cotrona (Dear John) has come aboard ABC cop drama pilot 187 Detroit; Julian Morris (24), Daniella Alonso (Friday Night Lights), and Kelli Garner (Lars and the Real Girl) have been joined the cast of Noah Hawley's ABC drama pilot Generation Y; Kaitlin Doubleday (Cavemen) will play one of the leads in FOX comedy pilot Most Likely to Succeed; Taran Killam (Scrubs) has joined the cast of ABC comedy pilot Freshmen; and Malcolm Goodwin (Leatherheads) has been cast in Matt Olmstead and Nick Santora's FOX drama pilot Breakout Kings. (Hollywood Reporter)

Lionsgate Television has signed a new two-year overall deal with Weeds creator Jenji Kohan that will keep her at the helm of Showtime's Weeds for a sixth season as well as develop other projects. First up is an untitled musical comedy for Showtime that Kohan is writing with Stephen Falk. "Having gotten to second base with Lionsgate in my former 'under the shirt but over the bra' deal," said Kohan, "it's a thrill to now be in bed with them and going all the way." (Kohan is also executive producing the studio's Epix drama pilot Tough Trade.) (Variety)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello has a first look at Cynthia Watros' upcoming arc on FOX's House, where she will play the first ex-wife of Robert Sean Leonard's Wilson beginning April 19th. "There can be great comfort in the past," Leonard told Ausiello. "He wants his blankie. And there’s the extra benefit of familiarity and, in a way, a lack of drama." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Comedy Central has ordered six episodes of an untitled comedy showcase, from executive producers Russell Simmons and Stan Lathan, which will air this summer and will be hosted by Curb Your Enthusiasm's JB Smoove. (Variety)

Bristol Palin, eldest daughter of former Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin, is set to play herself on an upcoming episode of ABC Family’s The Secret Life of the American Teenager that will air this summer. "Bristol Palin is the most famous teenage mother in America," said executive producer Brenda Hampton in a statement. "We're thrilled to have her join us, and I think she will bring additional attention to the issues facing teen parents that we've been exploring for a couple of seasons now." (via press release)

Cabler TLC has ordered a third season of docuseries The Little Couple, with 20 episodes set to launch in June. (via press release)

MTV has promoted Chris Linn to executive VP of MTV Production, where he will continue to oversee development and production of telepics as well as physical production and planning for pilots and series. Linn will be based in New York and will report to MTV programming chief Tony DiSanto. (The Wrap's TVMoJoe)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Syfy Standing Behind "Caprica," David Tennant to Star in BBC One Drama, Maggie Q Suits Up for CW's "Nikita," "Bones," and More

Welcome to your Friday morning television briefing.

Syfy's latest original series Caprica isn't going anywhere any time soon, according to the cabler's EVP of original programming Mark Stern in an interview with Airlock Alpha's Michael Hinman. "We're definitely with Caprica for the long haul," said Stern. "There's no question about it. We knew exactly what it was not going to be, that is an easily adopted show. It's not Battlestar Galactica, it's its own animal. And we definitely recognize that it's going to find its audience and it's going to grow its audience... We're certainly not sharpening the axe by any stretch of the imagination. We all really believe in the show, and it has a lot of potential." Set to air its fourth episode tonight, Caprica will air the first half of its freshman season (10 episodes) before taking a breather and returning in late summer, where it will be paired with another original series as a lead-in. [Editor: my best guess? Look for Caprica to be paired with Haven, the adaptation of Stephen King's "The Colorado Kid."] (Airlock Alpha)

David Tennant has been cast as the lead in Single Father, a four-part drama series for BBC One that is written by Mick Ford (Ashes to Ashes). Production is slated to begin next month on the BBC Scotland-produced drama, which revolves around a photographer and single dad who must raise his four children on his own and who falls in love with his wife's best friend. "I feel very lucky to have been sent this script," said Tennant in a statement. "When I read what Mick Ford had written I was desperate to be part of this project. And to be working with Red Production Company again makes me very happy indeed." (BBC)

Maggie Q (Mission: Impossible III) has been cast as the title character in the CW's Nikita, from executive producers McG and Craig Silverstein. In this version (itself one in a long line of remakes and updates since Luc Besson's 1990 La Femme Nikita), Maggie Q will play "a new Nikita being trained to replace the original one after she goes rogue." Casting marks the highest-profile minority casting at the netlet in its four-year history. Elsewhere, Roselyn Sanchez (Without a Trace) has landed the lead in Michele Fazekas and Tara Butters' ABC drama pilot Cutthroat, where she will play Nina Cabrera, a Beverly Hills widow who runs a drug cartel. (Hollywood Reporter)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello talks to Bones executive producer Stephen Nathan about what's coming up for Booth and Brennan on the FOX procedural drama series before the end of the season. "The season finale is taking shape now and it’s going to be quite a surprise," Nathan told Ausiello. "We literally are in the process of working it out. We’ve had this in our minds for quite a while, and it’s gelling now. It’s going to be a pretty big episode for us in terms of what happens to Booth and Brennan.... This one will be as big [as the Season Four ender] in emotional terms." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Former Wonderfalls star Caroline Dhavernas has landed one of the three lead roles in Shonda Rhimes' ABC medical drama pilot Off the Map. She'll play Lily, described as "a young doctor who deals with tragedy by moving to a jungle in South America to work in a free clinic." (TVGuide.com)

Rachelle Lefevre (Twilight) has been cast as one of the leads in CBS' untitled Hannah Shakespeare drama pilot, which is being executive produced by John Wells (ER). Lefevre, most recently seen on ABC's The Deep End, will play "a confident young doctor more comfortable in the field than in the office" in the drama, which revolves around a mobile medical team that travels the country helping those less fortunate who need extreme medical attention. Elsewhere, Meanwhile, Carrie Wiita (Reno 911!) and Andrea Savage (Dinner for Schmucks) have joined the cast of NBC comedy pilot The Strip, which stars Tom Lennon. (Hollywood Reporter)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Harold Perrineau (Lost) will guest star on CBS' CSI: NY in April, in an episode where he will play a death row inmate who is trapped inside the prison during a riot and who has a major bombshell to deliver to Hawkes (Hill Harper). (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Pilot director update: Simon West (Human Target) will direct the pilot for NBC's vigilante drama pilot The Cape; Jace Alexander (Burn Notice) will direct ABC drama pilot Edgar Floats; Bronwen Hughes (White Collar) will direct ABC dramedy pilot Cutthroat; David Semel (Heroes) will direct the pilot for ABC superhero family drama No Ordinary Family; Yves Simoneau (V) will direct ABC drama pilot Matadors, Peter Horton (Grey's Anatomy) will direct ABC cop drama True Blue; Gary Fleder will direct ABC's untitled Richard Hatem crime drama; Bill D'Elia (Boston Legal) will direct David E. Kelley's NBC pilot Kindreds; Terry George (Hotel Rwanda) will direct NBC's untitled John Eisendrath legal drama (aka Rough Justice); and Ken Fink (CSI) will direct CBS drama pilot The Odds. (Hollywood Reporter)

Looks like Glee will be continuing into the summer. Or at least until June 8th, when it will wrap up its freshman season. FOX confirmed the finale date, along with those for Fringe and Bones (May 20th), House (May 17th), Human Target (May 5th), and several others. (Futon Critic)

SPOILER! TV Guide Magazine's Will Keck has some details about what's in store for Season Seven of HBO's Entourage, which is about to begin production. "Vince will be working on a new big-budget film with lots of stunts and pyro techniques, requiring a stunt coordinator to help Vince (Adrian Grenier) through some dangerous scenes," writes Keck. "Meanwhile, Turtle (Jerry Ferrara) will be starting up a new business venture, hiring three sexy girls named Sarah, Rachel and Abby to chauffeur the rich and famous around L.A. Of course, the girls would rather be working as actresses in Vince's new film." (TV Guide Magazine)

Rufus Sewell (The Eleventh Hour) will star as Italian detective Aurelio Zen in a three feature-length dramas for BBC One based on Michael Didbin's novels. (BBC)

In other UK news, Season Two of five-part mystery drama Five Days will launch on BBC One in March. It will star Suranne Jones, David Morrissey, Anne Reid, Hugo Speer, Bernard Hill, Derek Riddell, Nina Sosanya, Steve Evets, Ashley Walters, Shaun Dooley, Matthew McNulty, Navin Chowdhry, Shivani Ghai, Sacha Dhawan, Cornell John, Aaron Neil, Philip Arditti, Kerry Condon, and Chris Fountain. According to the press materials: "Five Days 2 is an atmospheric ensemble drama – a mystery which unfolds over the five most significant days of the police investigation into these two mysteries. It is set in the heart of urban Yorkshire – a melting pot of tensions and relationships within a multicultural landscape." (BBC)

HBO has already renewed its 12-episode freshman comedy series Funny or Die, which premieres tonight, for a second season of 10 episodes. (Variety)

Allison Janey (The West Wing) will guest star on USA's In Plain Sight in a two-episode story arc in which she'll play "a newly-appointed US Marshal for the district who butts heads with Mary (Mary McCormack)." Janey is especially in demand this season, with the actor scoring a co-starring role opposite Matthew Perry in ABC comedy pilot Mr. Sunshine and a recurring role in Showtime drama pilot Shameless. (Hollywood Reporter)

TV Guide Magazine's Will Keck is reporting that former Charlie's Angels star Jaclyn Smith will guest star in an upcoming episode of NBC's Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, where she will play a former police officer. (TV Guide Magazine)

A&E has ordered a second season of docudrama Steven Seagal: Lawman, with 16 episodes set on tap. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Julianne Moore in Demand, Whedon Talks "Dr. Horrible," Flockhart to Cut Back on "Brothers," "House" Spinoff Possible, and More

Welcome to your Wednesday morning television briefing.

Could Julianne Moore become the lead of the US adaptation of crime series Prime Suspect? If NBC gets their way, she very well could be. Moore is being pursued by NBC for the remake of the Helen Mirren-starring British series as well as ABC to star in another remake: this time Scoundrels, based on Kiwi series Outrageous Fortune. Moore has some competition for the Prime Suspect gig as Maria Bello has also been approached about starring in the remake as well as starring in Jerry Bruckheimer-produced drama pilot Chase, which has offers out to Bello, Tea Leoni, and Christina Applegate. Other in-demand stars this pilot season: Matt Dillon, Jason Isaacs, Michael Chiklis, and Josh Lucas. (Hollywood Reporter)

E! Online's Megan Masters has an interview with Joss Whedon, in which the Dr. Horrible creator talks about the possibility of a sequel, directing FOX's Glee, Neil Patrick Harris, and more. "We very much want to do it," Whedon told Masters about Dr. Horrible 2. "We meet, we hammer out stuff, we have songs, we have ideas, we're really working it, but it's a slow-moving train. We're very passionate about it, and Neil's been great... He's always checking in before he takes a gig." As for whether Harris will turn up on Whedon's episode of Glee, nothing has been settled yet, according to Whedon. ("That's something that's trying to be worked out, but I haven't heard whether or not that's going to take place," he admitted. "I hope so, that'd be great, [but] I don't know anything about it. I'm just a director on hire for that.") (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Brothers & Sisters star Calista Flockhart will scale back her workload next season on the ABC drama series but will remain a series regular. News comes on the heels of an announcement that co-star Rob Lowe will depart the series at the end of the season. "A Brothers & Sisters insider confirms that Flockhart’s lighter workload was a contributing factor in Lowe’s decision to flee," writes Ausiello. "The West Wing alum already felt his role on the show had become diminished. The prospect of his TV spouse appearing in fewer episodes would’ve only increased his sense of marginalization." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

While the Michael Weston-centered House spinoff is definitely NOT happening, FOX president Kevin Reilly has indicated to Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello that executive producers David Shore and Katie Jacobs have a "standing offer" to develop another House spin-off. "They have really high standards," Reilly told Ausiello. "These are not guys who commercially are going to chase something just to announce they have a spinoff and then figure out the show later on. They’re probably the most thorough producers... I’ve ever worked with." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

CBS has given a pilot order to hybrid comedy Livin' on a Prayer, from executive producers Carter Bays and Craig Thomas (How I Met Your Mother) and writers Kourtney Kang and Joe Kelly. Project, from 20th Century Fox Television, will follow a Pittsburgh couple who are debating whether to take their relationship to the next level. (Variety)

Elsewhere at CBS, the network ordered three additional pilots: Chaos, about "rogue CIA operatives who combat bureaucratic gridlock, rampant incompetence and political infighting," from executive producer Brett Ratner, Tom Spezialy (Desperate Housewives), and 20th Century Fox Television; an untitled police procedural, from executive producers Ed Redlich (Without a Trace) and John Bellucci, CBS Television Studios and Sony Pictures Television, about a female NYPD detective who has total recall; and legal drama Defenders, from writers Niels Mueller and Kevin Kennedy and CBS Television Studios, about "two charismatic and fiery Las Vegas defense attorneys who go to the mat for their clients." (Hollywood Reporter)

ABC ordered a pilot for an untitled crime drama from writer Richard Hatem (Miracles) and director Gary Fleder, who will executive produce with Bert Salke and Chris Brancato. Project, from ABC Studios, revolves around a female detective who joins forces with a tarnished former cop to solve crimes "and untangle the conspiracy that sent him underground." (Hollywood Reporter)

Over at NBC, the Peacock has given a greenlight to an untitled Conan O'Brien-executive produced drama pilot (formerly known as Justice) about a ex-Supreme Court justice who starts his own legal practice. Project, from writer/executive producer John Eisendrath, hails from Universal Media Studios, where O'Brien's shingle Conaco has a year and a half left on its overall deal. (Variety)

Stan Lee will guest star as himself on the March 1st episode of CBS' The Big Bang Theory. According to TV Guide Magazine's Will Keck, Lee will "pop up in [the boys'] favorite comic book shop hangout." (TV Guide Magazine)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello has an interview with NCIS: LA executive producer Shane Brennan about the departure of one of the series' lead actors, which will spark an overarching storyline that will play out through the season. "To my mind, particularly in the first season of a show, there is no main cast," Brennan told Ausiello. "The audience is meeting a whole bunch of characters and you get the opportunity to play around with them. I’m a great believer in playing with the audience’s expectations. It’s about making it as different and fresh as often as you can. And I certainly took that approach with this first season… I want them to know that nothing is sacred. And the cast is aware that this is the game I play. No one’s safe." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Not such good news for FX, sadly, as the Season Three launch of serialized drama Damages lured only 1.4 million viewers, down a staggering 17 percent from its second season premiere. However, once DVR numbers are factored in, the series is expected to receive a boost in the ratings and FX has been quick to point out in the past that many viewers often DVR and save multiple episodes to then watch in a marathon-style viewing pattern. Those viewers who watch more than seven days after the broadcast are not included in any ratings reports. (Variety)

Looks like the cast of MTV's Jersey Shore will be returning for a second season, after all. While MTV refused to comment on the contract negotiations, sources told The Hollywood Reporter that MTV has doubled its episodic offer to the stars of the reality series, offering $10,000 an episode. A deal is thought likely to materialize by the end of the week, a relief for the cabler which wishes to get a new season of Jersey Shore on the air this summer. (Hollywood Reporter)

Martha Stewart is moving her eponymous daytime talk show from first-run syndication to cable, echoing the steps that Oprah Winfrey herself is making over the next year. The Martha Stewart Show will move this fall to Hallmark Channel as part of a programming strategy overhaul that will see telepics shift to Hallmark Movie Channel and Hallmark become a destination for lifestyle shows, series acquisitions, and holiday-themed programming. The Martha Stewart Show will air at 10 am Monday through Friday and then be followed by a 90-minute block of other Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia programming. (Variety)

FOX has promoted Shana Waterman and James Oh to VPs of current programming and promoted David Sleven to director. (via press release)

Stay tuned.

2010 William S. Paley Television Festival Lineup Announced

The Paley Center for Media has announced the lineup for the the 27th Annual William S. Paley Television Festival (known affectionately to its attendees as PaleyFest).

Critical darling Modern Family will kick off the festival on February 26th. Other series getting individual sessions include ABC's Lost, CW's The Vampire Diaries, FOX's Glee, NBC's Community, ABC's Cougar Town ABC's FlashForward, TNT's Men of a Certain Age, CBS' NCIS, Showtime's Dexter, AMC's Breaking Bad, and HBO's Curb Your Enthusiasm, the latter of which will be the festival's final offering this year.

Additionally, keep your eyes peeled for Seth MacFarlane and Friends, an evening celebrating McFarlane's animated comedies Family Guy, American Dad, and The Cleveland Show.

The day-by-day breakdown of the festival can be found below. (All panels begin at 7 pm.)

Feb. 26th: Modern Family
Feb. 27th : Lost
March 1st: NCIS
March 3rd: Community
March 4th: Dexter
March 5th: Cougar Town
March 6th: The Vampire Diaries
March 9th: Seth MacFarlane and Friends
March 10th: Breaking Bad
March 11th: FlashForward
March 12th: Men of a Certain Age
March 13th: Glee
March 14th: Curb Your Enthusiasm

The 27th Annual William S. Paley Television Festival runs from February 26th to March 14th at the festival's new location, The Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills. Tickets go on sale Friday, January 22nd for members and January 24th for the general public.

Individual tickets will go on sale to Paley Center Members on Friday, January 22, 2010 at 9:00 a.m. PT. Individual tickets will become available to the general public beginning the following Sunday, January 24, 2010 at 9:00 a.m. PT. For Paley Center Members, ticket prices are $60/$35/$25/$15 per event. For the general public, tickets are $75/$45/$35/$25 per event. All PaleyFest2010 tickets are available only via TicketWeb at www.ticketweb.com or call TicketWeb toll-free at (866) 468-3399 (service charges apply).

Channel Surfing: FOX Developing US "Torchwood," "Veronica Mars" Movie Dead, O'Loughlin Eyed for "Five-O," Whedon and Neil Patrick Harris, and More

Welcome to your Tuesday morning television briefing.

The Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed is reporting that FOX is developing a US version of British sci-fi series Torchwood that will hail from BBC Worldwide. Remake will be written by creator Russell T. Davies. and will feature the production team of the original series, including Julie Gardner and Jane Tranter. But that's not all. According to THR, it's possible that Torchwood's UK cast--including John Barrowman and Eve Myles--could star in the project, should it be ordered to pilot. "As for the new show’s plot," writes James Hibberd, "the U.S. version will contain a global story line compared to the more localized sensibility of the first two BBC seasons." Good news for the Torchwood team... or a disaster waiting to happen? (Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed)

Bad news for Veronica Mars fans: the feature film adaptation of the much-missed UPN/CW drama series has stalled, according to creator Rob Thomas. "No," Thomas told Futon Critic's Brian Ford Sullivan, who asked if the big-screen version of Veronica Mars would happen. "I would write it if anyone would finance it. If anyone's interested in making that movie I am available, Kristen's [Bell] available. I would love to do it. I think the closest we came was Joel [Silver] pushing it at Warner Bros. and they didn't bite. It has sort of gone away." (Futon Critic)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Alex O'Loughlin (Moonlight, Three Rivers) is being offered the lead role in CBS' pilot remake of long-running crime drama Hawaii Five-O, according to unnamed sources. "Talks are ongoing," and undisclosed insider told Ausiello. "CBS really wants to do another series with him." The remake is being overseen by Fringe co-creators Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci and Peter Lenkov (CSI: New York). (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Is a reunion between Joss Whedon and Neil Patrick Harris in the cards? Looks like it though it's not Dr. Horrible 2, unfortunately. (Not yet, anyway.) According to Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello, Harris is said to be in talks to appear on FOX's Glee in the May episode that will be directed by Whedon and which would feature the How I Met Your Mother star in a singing/dancing role. "The one possible snag — and there’s always one, isn’t there? CBS has to OK its MVP’s appearance on Fox’s breakout hit," writes Ausiello. "But at least since HIMYM and Glee are both produced by 20th Century Fox, there’s no conflict on their end." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Joss Whedon, meanwhile, is set to meet with FX president John Landgraf in the next few weeks. (Televisionary)

E! Online's Kristin Dos Santos is reporting that Jennifer Lopez is in talks to join Glee as a cafeteria worker in at least one episode. "Discussions are ongoing and we haven't gotten into the episode(s) she'd be appearing in," Glee executive producer Brad Falchuk told Dos Santos. (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

And in other Glee-related news, Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello spoke to Glee co-creator Ryan Murphy on Sunday evening (right before Glee took home the top musical or comedy TV prize) about what's coming up for the gleeful teens. Hint: it involves Puck and Rachel, a boyfriend for Kurt, the songs of Madonna, and some guest stars. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Jay Leno has addressed the controversy surrounding his eponymous 10 pm show, The Tonight Show, Conan O'Brien, and NBC, addressing his audience last night directly about the behind-the-scenes goings-on at the Peacock. "This is all business," said Leno. "If you don't get the ratings, they take you off the air." (Variety)

A must-read for everyone interested in television, not just those closely following the NBC/Jay Leno/Conan O'Brien fiasco: James Hibberd's insightful "Eight Ways NBC Has Damaged Itself" over at The Hollywood Reporter. (Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed)

FOX has given pilot orders to two projects, including drama Midland, from writer Kyle Killen (The Beaver), and an untitled multi-camera comedy from writer Adam Goldberg and director Seth Gordon. Midland, which hails from 20th Century Fox Television, revolves around a polygamist with a double life who works in the oil industry. The untitled Adam Goldberg/Seth Gordon comedy, meanwhile, will follow a group of twenty-somethings who hack computer security systems. (Hollywood Reporter)

FX has announced a Tuesday, March 16th launch date for its Elmore Leonard crime series Justified, starring Timothy Olyphant. (Futon Critic)

AMC is developing historical miniseres Black Gold: The Teapot Dome Scandal, from writer Kirk Ellis (John Adams) and executive producers Justin Falvey and Darryl Frank. Project, based on a nonfiction book by Laton McCartney, is set in the 1920s and depicts a major political scandal involving the election of President Warren G. Harding and big-time oil companies. (Hollywood Reporter)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello has some additional information about the return of Jennifer Morrison's Cameron to FOX drama House later this season. "The audience is going to get the information they were looking for," Morrison told Ausiello. But don't expect Cameron to stick around permanently. "I don’t believe that they have plans to pick up my option," she told Ausiello. "That does not mean I won’t be back for a handful of episodes, but it does mean I probably will not be a series regular next season." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Undercovers casting alert! Another actor has come aboard J.J. Abrams' NBC espionage drama pilot Undercovers. Jessica Parker Kennedy (Smallville) will play the younger sister of Gugu Mbatha-Raw's Samantha, a caterer. (Hollywood Reporter)

BBC America announced a spring start for its new musical reality series The Choir, in which choirmaster Gareth Malone travels to blue collar areas to create musical choirs. "The 13 episodes that BBC America will show are a compilation of short multi-seg bursts and specials that have aired across the Pond since the show launched on BBC Two in 2006," writes Variety's Jon Weisman. (Variety)

E! has given a series order to docudrama Pretty Wild, which follows three socialite sisters--Taylor, Alexis, and Gabrielle Neiers--in Hollywood. Project, from Borderline Amazing Prods., New Wave Entertainment, and Five Five Prods., will launch in March. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.

Wet, Wet, Wet: The 67th Golden Globe Awards

Just a few quick words about last night's Golden Globes.

I spent the evening watching the (thankfully) live telecast from home and then went over to the Beverly Hilton for HBO's Golden Globes after-party at Circa 55. As usual, HBO did an incredible job transforming the outdoor space (right at the poolside)... but, rather sadly, the network's handiwork was undone by the weather, rendering the glass-enclosed firepits and open-air seating unusable.

But the party must go on and it was moved under the tents and inside Circa 55 itself, where executives, celebrities, and bon vivants sipped Copper-tinis and Moet et Chandon champagne. Those celebrities included Mad Men's January Jones and Entourage's Jeremy Piven, Modern Family's Eric Stonestreet, Big Love's Chloe Sevigny (Golden Globe-winner Chloe Sevigny, I should say), Ginnifer Goodwin, and Mary Kay Place, True Blood's Anna Camp, Hung's Natalie Zea (with whom I chatted about her role in FX's upcoming drama series Justified), Grace Jones, and many, many others. Spotted at the Hilton on the way into the party: Tina Fey, the cast of Glee, White Collar's Tim DeKay, Busy Philipps, Aaron Paul (of HBO's Big Love and AMC's Breaking Bad), Flipping Out's Jenny Pulos, True Blood's Kristin Bauer, Mad Men's Christina Hendricks (and husband Geoffrey Arend), and... I'm forgetting a ton of others. (Forgive me, I'm still recovering.)

As for the actual telecast itself, it was a mixed bag, really.

I thought that Ricky Gervais' self-deprecating opening bit was absolutely hysterical but there was too little Gervais sprinkled throughout the ceremony, which seemed oddly stiff and rudderless at the same time. After the Hollywood Foreign Press Association made such a big deal about hiring a host for the awards telecast (the first time since 1995), it was odd that the evening seemed so, well, hostless.

I think that Gervais' humor, despite the copious amounts of alcohol flowing at the relatively more laid-back Golden Globes, is perhaps more suited for the Emmys in the end, where his seemingly impromptu comedy killed last fall. Here, there are so many categories to cover in two mediums, a host of celebrity presenters, and a hell of a lot of confusion. I didn't quite feel like Gervais had the MC role over the entire evening but rather just offered a comedic introduction to the evening's festivities.

As for the television awards themselves, I was happy to see both Alec Baldwin and Chloe Sevigny take home statuettes for their respective work in 30 Rock and Big Love. Considering that Big Love got shut out in the other categories--losing Best TV Drama to AMC's Mad Men--I was glad to see that Sevigny was recognized for her honest and soul-baring performance on the last season of Big Love.

I figured that Glee and Mad Men would take home the top prizes in their categories as well, so I wasn't surprised, though I was hoping that Modern Family would have won for Best TV Comedy. Yes, Glee fuses together comedy and music (thus making it perhaps the first honest double contender in the comedy or musical category) but Modern Family definitely deserved to win for its winning comedic chops.

Was happy to see Michael C. Hall win for Showtime's Dexter (would have loved to see Bill Paxton win an award for a change) as well as that for John Lithgow, but I was surprised by Julianna Margulies' win... but then again the HFPA does love to give awards to new series and The Good Wife was the only new drama in that category. Additionally, I was pulling for Edie Falco to win for Best Actress (Comedy) but that accolade went to Toni Collette. Still, very happy with the love very deservedly heaped on Grey Gardens, which won for Best Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television and Best Performance by an Actress in a Mini-series or Motion Picture Made for Television for Drew Barrymore's amazing turn as Little Edie Beale. (Which, incidentally, must be seen and heard to be believed.)

What did you think of the awards? Who were you happy to see win and who would you have rather had take home the statue? Which winner surprised you the most? And who had the best ensemble? Discuss.

Sing a Song Only You Can Hear: FOX Renews "Glee" for Second Season

Glee fans: it's time to sing.

In a completely unsurprising move, FOX has officially announced that it has renewed musical comedy Glee for a second season.

"We’ve loved Glee ever since it was a pilot script, so it’s been an incredible thrill to watch the show take root and see audiences embrace these characters in such a huge way this season," said Kevin Reilly, FOX President, Entertainment. "The show is a true and rare gem in television. We couldn’t be more proud of what Ryan Murphy and the Glee team have created so far, and can’t wait to see what they come up with for Season Two."

Glee's first season, meanwhile, is set to return to the schedule on Tuesday, April 13th at 9 pm ET/PT.

The full press release from FOX announcing the renewal can be found below.

GLEEKS REJOICE! FOX PICKS UP SECOND SEASON OF “GLEE”

NATIONWIDE OPEN CASTING CALL FOR “GLEE” BEGINS FEBRUARY
AND WILL AIR AS MULTI-PART SPECIAL THIS FALL ON FOX

Series Returns with All-New Episodes Tuesday, April 13, on FOX

FOX has ordered a second season of the genre-defying comedy GLEE, it was announced today by Kevin Reilly, President, Entertainment for Fox Broadcasting Company. GLEE has become a bona fide cultural phenomenon boasting winning ratings, critical acclaim, a rabid fan base of “GLEEks,” two certified Gold albums and more than 4 million song downloads. The series has received four Golden Globe nominations, including one for Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy; a Screen Actors Guild nomination for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series; two Directors Guild of America Award nominations; and a Writers Guild of America nomination for Best Comedy Series and Best New Series. Additionally, the American Film Institute named GLEE one of the Top 10 TV Programs of the Year, and the series also recently won a People’s Choice Award for Favorite New TV Comedy.

“We’ve loved GLEE ever since it was a pilot script, so it’s been an incredible thrill to watch the show take root and see audiences embrace these characters in such a huge way this season,” said Reilly. “The show is a true and rare gem in television. We couldn’t be more proud of what Ryan Murphy and the GLEE team have created so far, and can’t wait to see what they come up with for Season Two.”

GLEE has also launched the acting and singing careers of its young, talented cast, and turned them into international sensations. Replicating and expanding on the process used to discover the stars from Season One, the series’ executive producers will begin a nationwide casting search this February to fill three new roles that will be added to the show’s second season.

Building upon the show’s incredibly supportive community of GLEEks and with the hope of bringing fans even closer to the series, auditions will be open to amateur individuals as well as professionals between the ages of 16-26, and all hopefuls will be able to submit auditions online. Additional details to be announced soon, please check www.fox.com/glee for updates.

This unique casting search and process will be chronicled in a multi-part special that will air leading up to the premiere of the series’ second season in fall 2010 on FOX, and the new cast members will be revealed in the premiere episode.


-more-
“GLEE” PICKUP AND CASTING – Page 2

“GLEE has always been about finding new fresh exciting voices. Our second season search for young talent will be in the vein of our first season. We launched a nationwide search for talent for our first season with great unexpected results, and Season Two expands that search in an even bigger way,” said executive producer and creator Ryan Murphy. He added, “Anybody and everybody now has a chance to be on a show about talented underdogs. No matter who you are – a Broadway talent or a struggling singing waiter with a dream in the Midwest – you now have an opportunity to make that dream come true by posting your talent video and showing us what you can do. ALL the roles will be chosen from the video audition process, which is exciting and unprecedented. We want to be the first interactive musical comedy on television, and the search is ON.”

“GLEE is the hottest new show of the season, and it’s amazing to look back at the audition tapes of those stars as they were being discovered,” said Mike Darnell, President of Alternative Entertainment for FOX. “Just like GLEE, there’s never really been an unscripted program like this on television before. The stakes are real, and it’s going to be incredibly compelling to watch the lives of these unknowns transformed before our eyes.”

GLEE returns with all-new episodes on a new night beginning Tuesday, April 13 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX.

GLEE follows an optimistic teacher who – against all odds and a malicious cheerleading coach – inspires McKinley High’s Glee Club to conquer the world one singing competition at a time. GLEE stars Dianna Agron, Chris Colfer, Jessalyn Gilsig, Jane Lynch, Jayma Mays, Kevin McHale, Lea Michele, Cory Monteith, Matthew Morrison, Amber Riley, Mark Salling and Jenna Ushkowitz.

GLEE is produced by Ryan Murphy Television in association with 20th Century Fox Television. Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Ian Brennan are co-creators of the series. Murphy, Falchuk and Dante Di Loreto serve as executive producers, while Ian Brennan serves as co-executive producer.

HFPA Announces 2010 Golden Globes Nominations: "Glee," "Big Love," "Damages," "Dexter," "Mad Men," "30 Rock" Get Love

Another December, another batch of Golden Globe nominations. I got up very early on this very brisk Los Angeles morning to watch the nominations live as they were announced on-air by John Krasinski, Diane Kruger, and Justin Timberlake. (The latter of whom stole the show a little bit with his comment to Krasinski, "Someone's gonna have a good night tonight," after Emily Blunt earned a nomination for her role in The Young Victoria.)

But onto the nominations themselves. The Hollywood Foreign Press Association this morning announced its nominees for the 2010 Golden Globes, which will be handed out at a live telecast on NBC on January 17th.

Glee was the clear favorite this year, walking away with four nominations this morning, followed closely by 30 Rock, Big Love, Damages, Mad Men, and Dexter, each of which garnered three nominations in their respective categories, along with telepics Georgia O'Keeffe and Grey Gardens.

I'm thrilled, first off, that so many fantastic dramas got selected by the HFPA for recognition. While Lost was missing from the big picture (though Michael Emerson landed a supporting actor nod), Big Love earned a spot in the Best Television Series - Drama category and nominations for series leads Bill Paxton and Chloe Sevigny. Given that the third season of the HBO drama series was so phenomenal and so absolutely perfect, I wish that more of the cast had been recognized for what was the series' very best to date. Still, I'm beyond thrilled that both Paxton and Sevigny (who had an amazing season) were singled out for praise. (If you can't tell, I think that Big Love doesn't get nearly as many kudos as it should.)

Big Love has some tough competition in the category, however, going up against HBO's True Blood, Showtime's Dexter, AMC's Mad Men, and FOX's House. (Still, I'll be keeping my fingers crossed that it pulls off a win.)

More thoughts on the nominations below, along with the full list of television nominees.

The acting awards in the drama category look particularly fierce with Glenn Close, January Jones, Julianna Margulies, Anna Paquin, and Kyra Sedgwick landing nominations for their lead roles. I'm glad to see that Jones in particular landed a nom for her performance this season on Mad Men and, while each of these ladies are extremely talented, I'm again irked that neither Elisabeth Moss and Christina Hendricks landed a nomination. I was happy to see that Jon Hamm did received a nomination for his work on Mad Men; he's up against Simon Baker, Michael C. Hall, Hugh Laurie, and the aforementioned Bill Paxton.

On the comedy side, beyond excited that ABC's Modern Family got a nomination for its first season (which launched earlier this fall). I fully expected them to select the mockumentary comedy. Likewise, the inclusion of stalwarts 30 Rock, The Office, and Entourage didn't come as a surprise. While I love 30 Rock, I'm going to be rooting wholeheartedly for Modern Family to take the prize next month.

The Hollywood Foreign Press poured some love on Glee, nominating it not just for Best Television Series - Comedy or Musical but also for Best Actor - Comedy or Musical (Matthew Morrison), Best Actress - Comedy or Musical (Lea Michele), and Best Supporting Actress (Jane Lynch). Michele will go up against Toni Collette for United States of Tara, Courteney Cox for Cougar Town, Edie Falco for Nurse Jackie, and Tina Fey for 30 Rock. (I have to say that I'm pulling for Falco, who turned in a bravura performance this year in the stunning Nurse Jackie.)

As for Morrison, he'll have some very tough competition from Alec Baldwin (30 Rock), Steve Carell (The Office), David Duchovny (Californication), and Thomas Jane (Hung). (The latter of which is also joined by co-star Jane Adams, who landed a nomination for Supporting Actress.)

All in all, quite a few expected veteran series and actors landing nominations this year and a few newbies (Glee, Modern Family, Cougar Town, Hung) sneaking into the mix. But some interesting (read: head-scratching) snubs from the HFPA as well: Sons of Anarchy, In Treatment, Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Big Bang Theory, Breaking Bad all failed to garner nominations, while Lost got just one (for Emerson). Hmmm... the list goes on. (I'd get more indigent but then I remember that it's the Golden Globes.)

A full list of the Golden Globe nominees in the television categories can be found below.

5. BEST TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA
a. BIG LOVE (HBO)
Anima Sola and Playtone in association with HBO Entertainment
b. DEXTER (SHOWTIME)
Showtime Presents, John Goldwyn Productions, The Colleton Company, Clyde
Phillips Productions
c. HOUSE (FOX)
Universal Media Studios in association with Heel and Toe Films, Shore Z
Productions and Bad Hat Harry
d. MAD MEN (AMC)
AMC
e. TRUE BLOOD (HBO)
Your Face Goes Here Entertainment in association with HBO Entertainment

16. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES –
DRAMA
a. GLENN CLOSE - DAMAGES
b. JANUARY JONES - MAD MEN
c. JULIANNA MARGULIES - THE GOOD WIFE
d. ANNA PAQUIN - TRUE BLOOD
e. KYRA SEDGWICK - THE CLOSER

17. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA
a. SIMON BAKER - THE MENTALIST
b. MICHAEL C. HALL - DEXTER
c. JON HAMM - MAD MEN
d. HUGH LAURIE - HOUSE
e. BILL PAXTON - BIG LOVE

18. BEST TELEVISION SERIES – COMEDY OR MUSICAL
a. 30 ROCK (NBC)
Universal Media Studios in association with Broadway Video and Little
Stranger Inc.
b. ENTOURAGE (HBO)
Leverage and Closest to the Hole Productions in association with HBO
Entertainment
c. GLEE (FOX)
Twentieth Century Fox Television
d. MODERN FAMILY (ABC)
Twentieth Century Fox Television
e. THE OFFICE (NBC)
Universal Media Studios, Deedle Dee Productions, Reveille LLC

19. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES –
COMEDY OR MUSICAL
a. TONI COLLETTE - UNITED STATES OF TARA
b. COURTENEY COX - COUGAR TOWN
c. EDIE FALCO - NURSE JACKIE
d. TINA FEY - 30 ROCK
e. LEA MICHELE - GLEE

20. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES –
COMEDY OR MUSICAL
a. ALEC BALDWIN - 30 ROCK
b. STEVE CARELL - THE OFFICE
c. DAVID DUCHOVNY - CALIFORNICATION
d. THOMAS JANE - HUNG
e. MATTHEW MORRISON - GLEE

21. BEST MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
a. GEORGIA O'KEEFFE (LIFETIME TELEVISION)
Sony Pictures Television
b. GREY GARDENS (HBO)
Specialty Films and Locomotive in association with HBO Films
c. INTO THE STORM (HBO)
Scott Free and Rainmark Films Production in association with the BBC and HBO
Films
d. LITTLE DORRIT (PBS)
Masterpiece/BBC Co-production
e. TAKING CHANCE (HBO)
Motion Picture Corporation of America and Civil Dawn Pictures in association
with HBO Films

22. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MINI-SERIES OR MOTION
PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
a. JOAN ALLEN - GEORGIA O'KEEFFE
b. DREW BARRYMORE - GREY GARDENS
c. JESSICA LANGE - GREY GARDENS
d. ANNA PAQUIN - THE COURAGEOUS HEART OF IRENA
SENDLER
e. SIGOURNEY WEAVER - PRAYERS FOR BOBBY

23. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MINI-SERIES OR MOTION
PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
a. KEVIN BACON - TAKING CHANCE
b. KENNETH BRANAGH - WALLANDER: ONE STEP BEHIND
c. CHIWETEL EJIOFOR - ENDGAME
d. BRENDAN GLEESON - INTO THE STORM
e. JEREMY IRONS - GEORGIA O'KEEFFE

24. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A
SERIES, MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
a. JANE ADAMS - HUNG
b. ROSE BYRNE - DAMAGES
c. JANE LYNCH - GLEE
d. JANET McTEER - INTO THE STORM
e. CHLOË SEVIGNY - BIG LOVE

25. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A SERIES,
MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
a. MICHAEL EMERSON - LOST
b. NEIL PATRICK HARRIS - HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER
c. WILLIAM HURT - DAMAGES
d. JOHN LITHGOW - DEXTER
e. JEREMY PIVEN - ENTOURAGE

What do you think of the nominees? Who will you be rooting for come next month to take home the statue? Who do you think should have been nominated and who do you hope goes home empty-handed? Discuss.

The 67th Annual Golden Globe Awards, hosted by Ricky Gervais, will air on NBC on January 17th at 5 PM PST and 8 PM EST.