Chachi\'s "Development" Deal
Chachi is horning in on Fonzie\'s turf.
The Happy Days-obssessed masterminds of Arrested Development have tapped Scott Baio to take over as Bluth family lawyer this season, replacing Henry Winkler, who\'s heading off to his own series, CBS\' Out of Practice.
"I just got the call on Friday," Baio tells E! Online TV columnist Kristin Veitch. "I play their attorney. I\'m taking over for Barry Zuckerkorn. And I\'m just here to represent the family in whatever\'s going on in this nutty show."
Baio\'s character will have some low standards to live down to. In Development\'s two seasons, Zuckerkorn (whose Website is BarryGood.biz) has managed to stay employed despite some utterly inept lawyering and potentially deviant behavior.
It\'s the second big casting coup in recent days. Last week, Fox announced that Oscar winner Charlize Theron
would appear in five episodes as a British woman who becomes the love interest of Michael Bluth ( Jason Bateman).
The Emmy-winning series kicks off its third season Sept. 19 in a new time slot, 8 p.m. on Mondays. Theron will make her debut in the second episode; Baio will make his grand entrance the following week. So far, he\'s only signed for a one-off appearance.
Winkler (who in a wink to his Fonzified past, literally jumped a shark last season) costars with Stockard Channing as divorced doctors in CBS\' Out of Practice. The series premieres Sept. 19 at 9:30 p.m.
Baio\'s big break came as Fonzie\'s cousin Charles "Chachi" Arcola in the 1977 season of ABC\'s Happy Days. He eventually fell for Joanie Cunningham ( Erin Moran), got a spinoff (Joanie Loves Chachi) and returned in time for Happy Days\' final season in 1984, which ended with Joanie and Chachi getting hitched. In the intervening years he\'s mostly been relegated to TV movies and guest-starring roles. Baio\'s last series was supposed to be the 1997 Fox sitcom Rewind, but it was scrapped before it even made it to air.
Most recently he appeared as himself in the werewolf flick Cursed and joined the rest of the Happy Days campers for an ABC reunion special.
Arrested Development\'s Happy Days roots run deep. Aside from Winkler and Baio, erstwhile Richie Cunningham Ron Howard produces the show through his Imagine Entertainment and also serves as the series\' narrator.
"We\'re thrilled to have Chachi here," cracks Will Arnett (Gob Bluth). "I\'m hoping Pat Morita is next." :lol:
i may actually have to switch off the Giants game for a half hour for this.. i just can\'t see going to work on tuesday having not watched the AD premiere..
It’s been a week since my last entry. I can explain. Last Thursday, I was counting ants in the prison yard and it was a scorcher but I remember, I started killing the ants with my feet, yelling “Die you little black bastards, die!” I got stabbed – a whole lot.
When I woke up in the infirmary, I was surprised to find out that my stabber was the leader of an equal rights gang called: RAVIOLI or Rapists Against Violence Against Insects. When I went to apologize for killing the ants, I pointed out that ravioli doesn’t work as an acronym and they stabbed me again. Please God get me out of here! I think that’s blood on the keyboard. Yep, it is. I’m Oscar Bluth and I need medical attention!
"The King of Queens," 7.1/11, and "How I Met Your Mother," 6.8/10, put CBS in a first-place tie with ABC\'s "Wife Swap" at 8 p.m. (ABC\'s numbers for the hour include football in some parts of the country). "Surface" posted a 6.1/9 for NBC to finish third. The WB got a 3.4/5 from "7th Heaven," beating FOX\'s "Arrested Development," 2.7/4, and "Kitchen Confidential," 2.6/4. UPN trailed with "One on One" and "All of Us."
Quote"The King of Queens," 7.1/11, and "How I Met Your Mother," 6.8/10, put CBS in a first-place tie with ABC\'s "Wife Swap" at 8 p.m. (ABC\'s numbers for the hour include football in some parts of the country). "Surface" posted a 6.1/9 for NBC to finish third. The WB got a 3.4/5 from "7th Heaven," beating FOX\'s "Arrested Development," 2.7/4, and "Kitchen Confidential," 2.6/4. UPN trailed with "One on One" and "All of Us."
:sigh:
2 straight weeks with horrible ratings, AND getting beat by the fucking WB... :mad:
"Arrested Development." The funniest show on television is all but dead. There\'s no official announcement yet, but all the signs are there, and if this short-lived thing of beauty even manages to deliver half of a season, consider that a sanctioned-by-Rome miracle.
The ratings are abysmal. Fewer than 4 million viewers, which puts it in cable territory. Despite what may have been one of its funniest episodes ever in the first week, nobody watched. This past Monday, even fewer people watched. So much for Emmy power. So much for Charlize Theron as a cameo draw.
Blame? Easy. Fox moved the series from Sunday to Monday, which was: (a) stupid, (b) a planned assassination or (c) all of the above. The network barely promoted the night switch -- a killer for viewers, especially those trying to sample 30 new series -- and sure enough, "Arrested Development" drew fewer viewers than last season. Worse, once on Monday, the series got almost no push. Now, there\'s one more episode before Major League Baseball pre-empts the show -- and Fox will air "Prison Break" repeats in that slot for a bit after that and before, ahem, bringing back "Arrested Development."
Yeah, that\'ll happen. Enjoy next Monday\'s episode. Chances are, everything after that will be dubbed "the lost episodes" on the next DVD. Here\'s how things get worse for Fox: "Kitchen Confidential" is also dying on Mondays. That means Fox hasn\'t been able to launch a decent sitcom in some time, and, no, "The War at Home" on Sundays doesn\'t count. If you watch that, you deserve it.
But it\'s true that the audience always decides. Always. And if it doesn\'t want "Arrested Development" but gloms onto the asinine "War at Home," three things are in play here: (a) Nielsen families have lame taste, (b) we get the television we really deserve and (c) most damning, the theory of sophisticated urban viewers is out the window. San Francisco was the 27th-ranked market for "Arrested Development." New York, Los Angeles and Chicago all tied for 21st. And Boston was 45th. So much for savvy. Let\'s move to Portland, Ore., -- it was the No. 1-ranked market for "Arrested Development."
that\'s just like his opinion man, i see 0 facts about people from FOX talking about cancelling it... low ratings blah blah blah, they wouldnt have picked it up for a third season for 3 episodes, sorry
"Arrested Development" (households: 2.9/5, #13; adults 18-49: 2.2, #12)
1) CSI: Miami
2) MNF
3) 2.5 Men
4) Las Vegas
5) Medium
6) Out of Practice
7) Wife Swap
8) King of Queens
9) How I Met Your Mother
10) Surface
11) Prison Break
12) Seventh Heaven
DEVELOPMENT ARRESTED: Fox\'s Arrested Development is going on a brief production hiatus while leading man Jason Bateman recovers from throat surgery. "He\'s totally going to be fine," assures exec producer Mitch Hurwitz. "We\'re shutting down for a couple of weeks so he can recover, and then we\'ll be back in production." Despite the break, original episodes of Arrested will air as scheduled throughout November.
fear not, folks. the best show on TV is back tonight! 1 hour of AD at 8pm EST! :banana:
FOX Pulls "Arrested Development"
As I write this, I am wiping back tears. Zap2it is reporting that FOX has pulled "Arrested Development" from its lineup for November sweeps. This is definitely not a good sign, especially since they are replacing it with a rerun of the freshman drama "Prison Break."
Although the show will return in December, the network might be just be burning off remaining episodes. The show\'s order had been cut from 22 to 13, which is another sign that you should start TiVo\'ing or stocking up on the DVDs in stores -- if you want to get a glimpse of this excellent sitcom.
You can"t necessarily blame FOX, but I am going to anyway. They don\'t seem to like it that much -- never promoting and always pulling and switching. But in all honesty, the show hasn\'t performed that well. It has never gotten a great timeslot, although it seemed that no time was a good time to ask people to actually think. And although I found this season to be hilarious, it wasn\'t exactly going to attract any new viewers. Despite the presence of Charlize Theron, it was friggin\' weird to say the least. However, I was desperately waiting to see how it all wrapped up and what the next series of storylines would be.
FX? HBO? Are you listening? This is your time to snag a really good show with ratings that you\'d appreciate.
Its partner in the Monday timeslot, "Kitchen Confidential," has also been pulled for the time being. No surprises there; I can\'t even remember the last time it was on, but I was looking forward to the Michael Vartan episode.
Season 2 of "Arrested Development" is currently available on DVD. Slap it on and have yourselves a good cry. -- Rachel Cericola
\'Arrested Development\' cast kept guessing
By BILL BRIOUX - Toronto Sun
The funniest show on TV is about to be cancelled. No, not Martha Stewart\'s Apprentice. I\'m talking intentionally funny. I\'m talking Arrested Development.
For two-and-a-half seasons, the hilarious, Emmy-winning, Monday night original has struggled to find an audience. Fox has already yanked the series off its November sweeps schedule and declared that no more episodes past the 13 already in production will be ordered this season.
It looks bad for the Bluths. Star Jason Bateman (level-headed Michael Bluth) had to have emergency throat surgery, causing a two-week production shut down. The cast reassembled yesterday in L.A. for episode nine of this, the third season. There could be just five more to go.
The next episode -- the last to feature guest star Oscar-winner Charlize Theron -- will air Dec. 5 on Fox and Global.
You\'d think Brampton, Ont.-native Michael Cera --who plays Michael\'s innocent and overwhelmed son George Michael -- would be in full panic mode. When you\'re 17, the threat of losing a big U.S. gig has gotta hurt. But Cera was taking it all in stride when I spoke with him on the phone this week.
"It\'s nothing we haven\'t heard before," says Cera. "People have already been calling to comfort me that its been cancelled."
There is no official word. Cera says even creator/executive producer Mitch Hurwitz, whom he spoke with this week, doesn\'t know the ultimate fate of the series yet. "We\'re always guessing," says Cera.
He expects the 13th episode to wrap up the season, if not the series. Crazy storylines, like Tobias\' (David Cross) out of control hair implants ("it gets really insane -- the darkest thing we\'ve ever done," says Cera) will come to some sort of hairy conclusion. Then there\'s Uncle Oscar (Jeffrey Tambor), still in jail while George Sr. (also Tambor) eludes the cops.
Cera, who was home in Brampton last week where he even snuck in a little golf, has other things on his plate. This weekend is the premiere of Wayside (Saturday at 9 a.m., 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. on Teletoon), an hour-long animated special based on the comically absurd children\'s books.
Cera, who has done voice-over work before on series such as Braceface and Berenstain Bears, is the voice of Todd, one of the students in the quirky grammar school that was build on its side -- 30 storeys high instead of a regular long and flat school. Kathy Najimy also lends voice on the series.
Cartoon work is cool, says refreshingly frank and modest Cera. "Anyone can do it. You can feel awful. It\'s incredible. You\'re in and out in 15 minutes."
He\'s already got his next \'toon gig lined up: Cera will give voice to Howard Stern in an upcoming Spike TV animated series about the King Of All Media\'s teenage years.
Cera hasn\'t met the radio shock jock yet but he\'s listened to him -- for a few minutes. His mom, who is a Stern fan, is also a stern mom, switching off the King Of All Media when he got a little too vulgar for Cera\'s tender ears. "My mom\'s a big fan, though," says Cera. "She says he\'s hilarious."
He says Theron was "incredible, very sweet," treating the cast and crew by hiring a big coffee truck to back up to the set. "Nobody\'s ever done that before."
He\'s heard the rumours that FOX might hand off Arrested Development to their U.S. cable sister station FX. He doubts HBO, which likes to develop their own shows, will rescue the series.
If the series is kaput, Cera doubts that he will jump right into another sitcom. He\'s already figured out the terrible truth about television: "To last," he says, "it seems like you have to be lacking in heart."
Arrested Development (Mostly Likely) Will Return
But not to FOX (unless they wise up).
They had Brian Grazer (Glazer?) on the radio this morning. He said that they\'ve been shopping the show around and there is PLENTY of interest from networks and that it WILL be coming back. Didn\'t say when or who, but gave enough hints that suggest ABC.
Do you hold FOX accountable for what\'s going on?
I do, definitely. In my opinion FOX is known for being a network that just advertises, and that\'s pretty much how they get their viewers. Like with "The OC" and shows like that, there\'s billboards every 5 feet you go in LA. And with our show, the actual excuse for not publicizing us was, "We don\'t think it\'s going to help that kind of show." I don\'t see how getting the name out there is going to hurt our show with the ratings. A lot of people don\'t know about it, and if they do, they only see 1 episode, so they get confused. FOX needs to be showing marathons and re-runs so that people who haven\'t seen it can watch the whole first season and the second season. But they refuse. They think that we just have to do it on our own, and supposedly get 20 million people in one viewing, and no one\'s even heard of the show. So I don\'t really think that FOX is the best network for the show
because FOX has to make room for terrific shows like Dark Angel, Titus, Undeclared, Action, That 80’s Show, Wonderfalls, Fastlane, Andy Richter Controls the Universe, Skin, Girl’s Club, Cracking Up, The Pitts, Firefly, Get Real, Freakylinks, Wanda at Large, Costello, The Lone Gunmen, A Minute with Stan Hooper, Normal Ohio, Pasadena, Harsh Realm, Keen Eddie, The Street, American Embassy, Cedric the Entertainer, The Tick, Louie, and Greg the Bunny.
Showtime may rescue Arrested Development
December 14, 2005 at 11:04:00 AM
Cult favorite may get a second chance on cable channel.
Will the pay-TV environs of Showtime be a friendlier place for the Emmy-winning comedy Arrested Development, which just got canceled by Fox?
Word around town this week is that Showtime is in talks to pick up the comedy about a chaotic family. Sources stressed that the talks are still exploratory and that it would be a big financial commitment on Showtime\'s part to pick up the show in its current form with a large ensemble cast that includes Jason Bateman, Jeffrey Tambor, Portia de Rossi, Jessica Walter, and Will Arnett.
Arrested was an instant hit with critics following its debut on Fox in late 2003, but the show never pulled in much of a crowd, even after it won the Emmy for best comedy series in 2004. Last month, Fox threw in the towel, cutting its episode order for Arrested\'s third season from its initial 22-episode ticket to 13.
Representatives for Showtime, and the series\' producers 20th Century Fox TV and Imagine TV declined comment late Tuesday.
so... comments on this week\'s episode? i just watched it, but this is one that definitely needs multiple viewings, imo..
I really, really, really think Arrested Development is NOT going away. My moles (not the hairy cancerous kind) tell me that Showtime is DYING to pick up this comedy we so love (they are definitely on the upswing with their recent Globes noms for ****s which were the first in ages), HOWEVAH! FOX NEEDS TO OFFICIALLY CANCEL THE DANG THING BEFORE THEY CAN DO ANYTHING. Hello?!! Peter Liguori!! Show some mercy, for the love of Bluths!! And don\'t be surprised if he ends up keeping it around just to spite the cabler ... (Similar to what ABC did keeping Jake in Progress to keep John Stamos off a full-time gig on ER).
So ... we need to be patient.
FOX Lets \'Arrested\' Out One Last(?) Time
Friday, January 13, 2006
10:48 AM PT
Fans of "Arrested Development" will, in fact, get to see the show\'s final four episodes this season. Given where FOX has scheduled them, though, it seems rather certain that not many others will.
FOX aired what felt like a finale on Jan. 2. The episode, titled "SOBs" -- short for Save Our Bluths, which is also the name of a fan web site trying to save the show -- stuck to "Arrested\'s" deeply self-referential guns by mocking both the conventions of ratings-grabbing stunts and its own insular nature ("Maybe we\'re not that likable," Michael Bluth (Jason Bateman) tells his family at one point).
But the network has decided to air the season\'s final four episodes in one two-hour block Friday, Feb. 10. That night also happens to feature the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics on NBC, an event that is likely to dominate the ratings that night.
The final four episodes of the season will feature guest appearances by Justine Bateman, Jason\'s sister, and Judge Reinhold, also seen in the "SOBs" episode (indicating that it may have aired out of sequence). Justine Bateman will play a woman who Michael believes may be his long-lost sister Nellie, while Reinhold plays himself, hired by the family\'s new lawyer to act as a judge in a mock trial to help the Bluths prepare for a real court case.
The episodes will also feature Gob (Will Arnett) traveling to Iraq to perform a Christian magic act, which lands him in prison; Buster (Tony Hale) faking a coma to avoid testifying in the family\'s court case; and George Michael (Michael Cera) and Maeby (Alia Shawkat) taking part in a mock wedding to entertain hospital patients. The whole thing ends up at a yacht party, which is where the series started.
The episodes could well be the last to air on FOX, which ordered only 13 shows this season. ABC and Showtime have reportedly expressed interest in picking up "Arrested Development," but for now the show\'s fate remains up in the air.
\'Arrested\' developments
TelevisionWeek (from which I also stole the headline) is reporting that both ABC and Showtime have offered the producers of "Arrested Development" deals to continue the series on their networks. And it\'s all above board because when Fox reduced this season\'s order from 22 to 13 episodes, "the reduction triggered a clause in the show\'s contract enabling producers to shop the series elsewhere," sayeth TVWeek. The producers are said to be "mulling both offers," a one-year deal from ABC and a two-year deal from Showtime, part of the CBS family.
FOX\'s session at the TCA Winter Press Tour today has generated quite a bit of noise.
Whether it be the identity of the killer in "Reunion," the fate of "Arrested Development" or the possible revival of "Futurama," there were plenty of interesting nuggets doled out by Entertainment president Peter Ligouri.
Here\'s a breakdown of the related quotes:
ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT EXCHANGE #1
QUESTION: Could you reflect, because you\'ve got a couple major sitcoms ending in the spring, and also should I ask you, is "Arrested Development" for sure going to end on February 10th? Is that going to be the last day for it?
PETER LIGUORI: Let\'s deal with them in two parts. As far as "Arrested" goes, we ordered 13 for this season. We are going to run four episodes in a row on that February date. I have to be frank with you, it is highly unlikely the show is coming back but no definitive final answer has been made on that.
QUESTION: Okay. So what I\'d like to ask you to do is just reflect over all, because it\'s kind of a pivotal point for you. If "Arrested" goes, those are three major sitcoms ending a run. A lot of people are having trouble with sitcoms. You were going very heavily four-camera stuff and the two new ones you\'ve shown us are very strongly camera-ones. Tell us what you think the state of the sitcom is at this point.
PETER LIGUORI: It\'s daunting, but I think the state of the sitcom runs cyclically just like every other genre. Right now the sitcom isn\'t in its most healthy state, but we\'re always one great show away from that turning around.
I just look back to the \'70s when Norman Lear came on the scene. People were really talking about the demise of the sitcom back then. So from our standpoint, we\'re out there every day, trying to find show runners and show creators with a vision. It is daunting when you realize that there are aging comedies on the air on Fox, but we\'re looking at it from a long-term perspective. We\'re out there aggressively developing and hoping to replace those shows.
ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT EXCHANGE #2
QUESTION: Peter, your left here. You stopped short a little earlier of giving a definitive answer on "Arrested Development" and I\'m just curious about that for one thing. I\'m wondering what calculations are left to be made. And second of all, there\'s a lot of talk about a couple of other networks perhaps, you know, being interested in getting that show on their air. So is it fair to the producers to kind of leave them hanging if you\'re almost certain you\'re going to kill the show here?
PETER LIGUORI: My goal is to be fair with the producers and fair with everyone here. It is highly unlikely "Arrested" is coming back. What new calculations are available? I mean basically we\'ll wind up looking at where our development is. We\'ll wind up seeing what those four episodes do. We anticipate those four episodes will be populated by the loyal audience and we\'re in dialogue with Mitch all the time.
QUESTION: Peter, in the back, continuing that line of -- yeah, in the middle.
PETER LIGUORI: Okay.
QUESTION: Specifically, two networks were allowed to negotiate with the producers, and report says it\'s because there was a -- something triggered in the contract when you reduced the season order from 22 episodes to 13 episodes. I was wondering why you let them do that and if that\'s just a one-time think that you granted to "Arrested Development." Also, what do you anticipate for the thinly disguised jabs at FOX in the last four episodes?
PETER LIGUORI: First and foremost, let\'s talk about where the show is going. You should ask the studio. You should ask Mitch what\'s going on with that. At this point, I don\'t know. But look, it is regrettable that we could not find the audience that that show deserved. It is in fact a studio property. If there\'s interest at other networks, it\'s the studio\'s right and Mitch\'s right to move that on and put that up to bid.
Now, in terms of the jabs, it would be really duplicitous of us as a network to put a dampening effect on the great art of the spoof. We have a good relationship with the show runners. I think it is great humor to turn it back on FOX a bit. And I think we\'ve made fun of ourselves consistently. I think you\'ve seen it on "The Simpsons." We have a sense of humor about the business. We have a sense of humor about ourselves. And we\'re glad it\'s Mitch that\'s doing it because he does it with great dexterity.
QUESTION: Are you holding out your decision, your final decision on "Arrested Development" in part because these other networks are talking to them?
PETER LIGUORI: No. Two separate issues.
ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT EXCHANGE #3
QUESTION: Peter, earlier you said that there -- you didn\'t see a major difference between the philosophies between FOX and FX. And I was thinking back to comments you made a couple years ago about, when you were still at FX, that you would like to have a certain show if FOX canceled it. What\'s your relationship with FX like now? Has it changed from when Gail was in this position? And did you have any discussions about "Arrested Development" with FX?
PETER LIGUORI: Needless to say I\'m way more intimate with FX than Gail was and have a great relationship with John and sit back and admire everything that\'s going on with that network. You know, I just look back at the -- last week, the creative of "The Shield" and the phenomenal ratings that FX did, the tremendous finale of "Nip/Tuck." And John and I, I would say, talk almost on a daily basis. So we\'ve discussed many, if not every show. I enjoy that relationship. Whatever is good for FX is good for News Corp., and we\'ve lobbed many ideas back and forth over the net.
QUESTION: How about "Arrested"?
PETER LIGUORI: You know, we have thought about how to work that out. The biggest difficulty for a network like FX is, "Arrested Development" is an expensive show. And it\'s way more difficult to make the economics of that show work on FX versus another network broadcaster.
QUESTION: Would it surprise you that Showtime was interested in it given the --
PETER LIGUORI: Again, I know nothing about those negotiations. But if you just look at it as an outside observer, from a numbers standpoint, if Showtime were able to migrate the absolute numbers that "Arrested" gets on FOX to Showtime, that would be by far and away its Number 1 show. So as far as hearing those rumors and saying, "Does that make sense for a Showtime?," strategically, numerically, quantitatively, probably.
I have to watch at LEAST 4 back to back.
i\'m fine with that if it\'s 4 i\'ve seen already, but i like to watch new eps multiple times and digest them first..
Leith Showtime or CBS will grab this baby the second the last epi airs.....
Quote from: TreyChicaLeith Showtime or CBS will grab this baby the second the last epi airs.....
Yeah I put maybe. I will not buy a subscription to showtime just for AD and CBS will just bury it after one of their great shows now like King of Queens.
Paul Reubens was Murphy\'s best secretary...Actually I thought Michael Richards(Kramer) was.
Producer Ron Howard\'s critically-acclaimed, fan-favorite series about the weird and wacky Bluth family returns for its third (and possibly final) uproarious season. Emmy winner for Outstanding Comedy Series, "ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT" has attracted a cult following of die-hard fans with its uniquely witty characters and outrageously funny storylines.
With the fate of the series still up in the air (there\'s talk of Showtime picking it up), Fox is planning to release the third season on June 13. This 2 disc set will contain the 13 episodes produced for season 3 (286 mins). The set will sell for $29.98
Disc 1:
The Cabin Show
The British Bombshell
Forget Me Now
Notapusy
Mr. F
Ocean Walker
Prison Break-In
Disc 2:
Making A Stand
S.O.B.s
Fakin\' It
Family Ties
Exit Strategy
Harboring Resentment
The Anamorphic Widescreen (1.78:1) picture will be accompanied by an English Surround audio track, and English, French and Spanish subtitles. We haven\'t heard what the bonus material will be, but there should be some on the set.
March 21, 2006
Still no \'Development\' in Showtime\'s future
By Ray Richmond
A cat has nothing on "Arrested Development," which has to be somewhere in the double digits when it comes to lives amassed. Simply surviving for the better part of three abysmally rated seasons on Fox was worth a good half-dozen life spans alone. And lately, the rumor mill has been working overtime to give the Emmy-winning comedy another handful or so.
The show\'s traveling to Showtime has been trumpeted in various media as a done deal repeatedly since late last year. And then, somehow, it doesn\'t get done, giving us all license to write cutesy headlines like "Showtime Can\'t Get \'Arrested\' -- Yet."
So fervent is "Arrested Development\'s" cult following that the mere possibility of Showtime\'s picking it up and producing more originals has proven a badge of enormous goodwill for the pay cabler. Arguably, the ongoing scuttlebutt is at least equally beneficial to actually ordering and running the show.
Never before has so much been written about and speculated upon with regard to a program that averaged a 6 share. It\'s the underachieving stalwart that we won\'t allow to die, an ongoing symbol of art triumphing over commerce. Yet for the moment, it remains simply another homeless property stuck in neutral.
Be that as it may, let\'s take a moment to separate "Arrested Development" fiction from "Arrested Development" fact.
n Fiction: The show has already been snapped up by Showtime to the tune of a 26-episode order, which will be announced any day. Fact: Showtime\'s hands are tied, pending a decision by "Arrested\'s" creator and executive producer, Mitch Hurwitz, who is said to be physically and mentally drained and undecided whether he wants to come back for more.
n Fiction: FX is also in the bidding for "Arrested Development." Fact: There is no bidding. ABC was once in the mix but is thought to have dropped out, leaving it a Showtime-or-nobody proposition.
n Fiction: Hurwitz can take his time making a decision because the actors and writers love the job so much they\'ll wait it out. Fact: Contractually, Hurwitz has basically until June to go forward (or not). After that, he loses most of the cast and writing staff.
n Fiction: If Hurwitz wants to keep the show in production, Showtime is on board no matter what. Fact: The word is that Hurwitz would require huge wads of cash to be lured back, and there are surely limits to Showtime entertainment president Robert Greenblatt\'s largesse (even at the "No Limits" network). But if a deal can be worked out, the cabler is apparently indeed on board to commit to 26 new originals over two seasons.
Hurwitz -- difficult to snare for interviews over the past year and pretty much impossible lately -- couldn\'t be reached for comment, while Showtime merely confirmed its ongoing interest in the property. But it\'s as easy to see this thing falling apart as coming together, given the guru\'s ambivalence and the fact an agreement would require Showtime to lay out upwards of $60 million for a series with iffy mainstream appeal at best.
Showtime would naturally be counting on "Arrested Development" to bring in scads of press and a sizable bump in its subscriber base so as to justify such a pricey proposition. But it has already shown it will put up big money to turn out projects it believes in, such as the drama "Huff" (which launches Season 2 on April 2) and the limited-run series "Sleeper Cell."
As Greenblatt has previously stressed, his network has the luxury of attracting a niche audience to a quirky show like "Arrested" and claiming it a major success. The bigger question in the meantime is whether the man who fathered it will ultimately succumb to the dreaded Bluth Burnout or answer the bell for Round 4. If he knows, he\'s not telling.
al,
unfortunately, the thing that makes this show so great is also the thing that puts up a brick wall for newcomers.. there are a TON of subtle \'inside\' jokes, which refer to previous episodes. i couldn\'t possibly expect someone to watch for the first time last night and fall in love with the show.
that said, pick up the first season dvds from Amazon, and go from there. you will NOT be disappointed.
Best of Jason Bateman since \'Hogan Family\' and \'Teen Wolf Too\' ;)
Showtime to pick up Arrested Development?
Cable network reportedly picks up 26 episodes, but nets are mum on the truth.
The New York Post\'s Page Six gossip column reports that cable network Showtime has picked up 26 episodes of the canceled cult sitcom Arrested Development. The show was axed by Fox after three seasons of Emmy-winning hilarity due to perennially low ratings. Neither network had anything to say officially.
In January, Showtime president Peter Greenblat told reporters at the Television Critics Association press tour that his network was seriously considering picking up the show.
"I always thought it was probably a better fit on a cable network than on a broadcast network," Greenblatt said. "And you know, in fact, I think it really does fit in with a lot of the things that we\'re doing."
The deal was contingent upon the involvement of show creator Mitchell Hurwitz--at the time, he was having reservations about continuing with the show after three years of stressful dealings with Fox.
"I think he\'s the genius behind it, and he hasn\'t yet come to that decision to continue the show," Greenblatt said of Hurwitz.
Arrested Development averaged around 4 million viewers a week in its third and final season, paltry by broadcast TV standards but huge for a cable network like Showtime. In contrast, ****s, a popular Showtimes series, averages less than 500,000 viewers a week. Even king of the cable hill HBO commands only a few million viewers per week for its non-Sopranos shows--the Mafia-inspired drama, which returns March 16, garners 10 million to 11 million viewers a week.
By Colin Mahan - TV.com
March 1, 2006 at 01:55:00 PM
QuoteBy Colin Mahan - TV.com
March 1, 2006 at 01:55:00 PM
it didn\'t happen. :(