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Get ready for more sparkly vampires — a Twilight TV series is reportedly in early development. Oscar-winner Michelle Yeoh will star in Star Trek: Section 31 at Paramount+. The White Lotus welcomes back fan favorite Natasha Rothwell for season 3. The Duffer Brothers developing sci-fi series The Boroughs at Netflix. Plus, trailers for the Russo Brothers’ spy thriller Citadel, Pete Davidson’s Bupkis, and more of the past week’s biggest news in TV and streaming.
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(Photo by ©Summit Entertainment)
Continuing with the trend of bringing new projects to life based on established IP, Lionsgate TV is in early development on a Twilight TV series, according to an exclusive report by THR.
Based on the Stephanie Meyers four-book series of the same name, the Twilight movie franchise (better known as The Twilight Saga) featured five films in total, released from 2008 to 2012, and launched the careers of Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart, and Taylor Lautner. The series follows a high school girl named Bella Swan (Stewart) who falls in love with a mysterious boy named Edward Cullen (Pattinson) who reveals himself to be 108-year-old vampire.
The new TV series would be based on the books, but it’s unclear if the project would be a remake, a sequel, or a new take on the vampire tale altogether. Sinead Daly (The Walking Dead: World Beyond, Raised by Wolves) will write the script. Wyck Godfrey of Temple Hill production company, which produced the five-film franchise, and Erik Feig, the former co-president of Lionsgate Motion Picture Group, will executive produce with Meyers expected to join the production should it go to series. Currently, no network or streaming service is attached to the project.
(Photo by Russ Martin/CBS)
Academy Award winner Michelle Yeoh will headline Star Trek: Section 13 at Paramount+. Yeoh will reprise her role as Emperor Philippa Georgiou, who she originally played in the first season of Star Trek: Discovery. The original movie event will follow Georgiou as she joins a secret division of Starfleet takes with protecting the United Federation of Planets and faces the sins of her past.
“I’m beyond thrilled to return to my Star Trek family and to the role I’ve loved for so long,” Yeoh said in a statement. “Section 31 has been near and dear to my heart since I began the journey of playing Philippa all the way back when this new golden age of Star Trek launched. To see her finally get her moment is a dream come true in a year that’s shown me the incredible power of never giving up on your dreams. We can’t wait to share what’s in store for you, and until then: live long and prosper (unless Emperor Georgiou decrees otherwise)!”
Star Trek: Section 13 will go into production later this year.
Citadel is here to take the spy genre to new television heights, and considering its budget, reported to be over $200 million, it’s one of the most expensive series ever made. Expectations are definitely running high.
Taking place eight years following the fall of Citadel, a shadow establishment of international spies, the series finds mild-mannered little league coach Mason (played by Game of Thrones alum Richard Madden) and Nadia (Priyanka Chopra Jonas) sucked back into the spy life after they learn their average lives are actually a cover for their real identities. And thanks to their de facto leader Bernard (Stanley Tucci), they soon discover their memories were wiped for protection purposes and, in all actuality, they’re really super-sexy super spies with impeccable fight skills.
Who can they trust and who will they betray? With a globe-spanning manhunt kicked into high gear, the polished series promises jaw-dropping action sequences galore (the Russo Brothers are behind this, after all), sultry drama, and a whole load of espionage goodness.
The overall goal here is to kick off a new Citadel cinematic universe, with multiple installments in the works in different countries. A second season has already been ordered by Amazon, making us think this show, which is easily the most ambitious — and most risky — project hitting the small screen this year, may actually pay off for the streamer.
Citadel premieres on April 28 on Amazon Prime Video.
More trailers and teasers released this week:
• In Sweet Tooth season 2, a deadly new wave of the Sick is bearing down on humanity. Can Gus and a band of other child hybrids break free from the villainous General Abbot (Neil Sandilands) and help find a cure before it’s too late? Premieres April 27. (Netflix)
• All the Light We Cannot See is a groundbreaking limited series based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Anthony Doerr that follows the story of Marie-Laure, a blind French girl, and her father, Daniel LeBlanc, who flee German-occupied Paris with a legendary diamond to keep it from falling into the hands of the Nazis. Premieres November 2. (Netflix)
• City on Fire, from the executive producers of Gossip Girl and The O.C., takes place after a college student is shot in Central Park on July 4, 2003. The investigation into the crime connects a series of mysterious citywide fires, the downtown music scene, and a wealthy uptown real estate family fraying under the strain of the many secrets they keep. Premieres May 12. (Apple TV+)
• FUBAR stars Arnold Schwarzenegger in his first ever TV series and follows a father and daughter after they learn that they’ve each secretly been working as CIA Operatives for years. Forced to team up as partners, FUBAR tackles universal family dynamics set against a global backdrop of spies, fantastic action, and humor. Premieres May 25. (Netflix)
• John Mulaney: Baby J is a brilliantly blunt and quotable stand-up special filmed at Boston’s Symphony Hall. After a weird couple of years, John Mulaney comes out swinging in his return to the stage. Premieres April 25. (Netflix)
• Bupkis is a heightened, fictionalized, half-hour live-action comedy version of Pete Davidson’s real life. The series combines grounded storytelling with absurd elements from the unfiltered and completely original worldview for which Pete is well known. Basically, things are going to get weird — and emotional. Get ready. Premieres May 4. (Peacock)
• The Idol follows Jocelyn (Lily Rose-Depp), a singer striving to bounce back from the nervous breakdown derailed her last tour and become the greatest and sexiest pop star in America. Her passions are reignited by sordid nightclub impresario, Tedros (Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye). Will she reach glorious new heights or plummet to the deepest and darkest depths of her soul? Premieres June 4. (HBO)
• Star Trek: Stranger New Worlds boldly returns for season 2 for new adventures full of new life and new civilizations, and, of course, exploring strange new worlds. Premieres June 15. (Paramount+)
• Rainn Wilson and the Geography of Bliss follows host and intrepid traveler Rainn Wilson as he traverses the globe searching for the secrets to the happiest societies on earth. Based on Eric Weiner’s New York Times bestselling book, “The Geography of Bliss: One Grump’s Search for the Happiest Places in the World,” Rainn will explore some of the happiest and least happy places on earth from Iceland to Qatar to Ghana, and in a profound, humorous, and experiential way that unpacks the science of happiness. Premieres May 18. (Peacock)
• Moonage Daydream is a cinematic odyssey from director Brett Morgen exploring David Bowie’s creative, spiritual, and musical journey. Premieres April 29. (HBO Max)
• Fired on Mars is an existential and irreverent animated comedy series starring Luke Wilson that takes the often precarious and relatable struggle to find a balance between one’s work life and personal one — and places it light years away from Earth. Premieres April 20. (HBO Max)
For all the latest TV and streaming trailers subscribe to the Rotten Tomatoes TV YouTube channel.
(Photo by Mario Perez/HBO)
Natasha Rothwell, who played spa manager Belinda Lindsey in the first season of The White Lotus for which she earned an Emmy nomination for best supporting actress in a limited or anthology series, will reprise her fan favorite role in the show’s third installment. Season 3 will take place in Thailand and, previously, creator Mike White teased at the end of season 2 that the next round of episodes “may focus on death and Eastern religion and spirituality,” some topics that may line up perfectly with Belinda’s wellness expertise. (Variety)
Idris Elba and Adam Pally will star in Sonic the Hedgehog spin-off series Knuckles for Paramount+. Elba will play Knuckles with Pally reprising his movie role as Wade Whipple. Edi Patterson, Julian Barratt, Scott Mescudi, Ellie Taylor, and Rory McCann will also appear in the series, with Tika Sumpter reprising her role as Maddie. The program, which is being billed as a “hilarious and action-packed journey of self-discovery” will take place between Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and Sonic the Hedgehog 3, the latter, of which, set to hit theaters on December 20, 2024.
Benedict Cumberbatch will star as Tom Hazard in How to Stop Time, a TV adaptation of Matt Haig’s genre-bending best-selling novel following a man who suffers from a rare medical condition that has kept him alive for centuries. (Hollywood Reporter)
Ewan McGregor is set to star in Lodi, which is currently in development at Amazon. He’ll play Lou, a car salesman-turned-mafia informant in the drama series, based on the true story as told in Andrew Dubbins’ Alta online article. (Variety)
Will Ferrell will star in and executive produce a yet-to-be-titled, currently in development, golf-themed comedy series from Rian Johnson’s T-Street and Gloria Sanchez Productions. (Deadline)
(Photo by Araya Doheny/Getty Images)
Anna Camp has been added to the cast of Peacock’s Satanic Panic–themed thriller Hysteria! as a series regular. She’ll play small-town mom Tracy Whitehead, a religious zealot who becomes a dangerous leader after a string of unexplained disturbances plagues her community. Rounding out the main cast are Emjay Anthony, Chiara Aurelia, and Kezii Curtis — who will play neighborhood outcasts Dylan Campbell, Jordy, and Spud as Spud — and Nikki Hahn as Faith, a sheltered teen who is forever changed by a traumatic crime. (Deadline)
Kylie Minogue, Jane Curtin, and Eliza Coupe are among the 16 additions announced for Shondaland’s highly anticipated Netflix series The Residence. Joining them in the screwball whodunit are Julieth Restrepo, Sumalee Montano, James Babson, Izzy Diaz, Paul Fitzgerald, Roslyn Gentle, Chris Grace, Juliette Jeffers, Nathan Lovejoy, E. L. Losada, Mel Rodriguez, Brett Tucker, and Rebecca Field. (Deadline)
Charlie Sheen is reuniting with Chuck Lorre on Max comedy series How to Be a Bookie. He’ll appear in a recurring role opposite lead Sebastian Maniscalco. (Deadline)
It prequel series Welcome to Derry (wt) has added Madeleine Stowe and Stephen Rider to the cast. Stowe will recur, with Rider coming on as a series regular. The details behind their roles were not released. (Deadline)
FX’s reboot of the British comedy series Peep Show has added Minnie Driver and Amandla Jahava to the cast. (Variety)
(Photo by Tina Rowden/Netflix)
As we wait for the fifth and final season of Stranger Things to hit Netflix, the Duffer Brothers are putting their next project in place at the streamer. Staying in their sci-fi wheelhouse, the duo are working on The Boroughs, however, the leads in the new project aren’t a group of young misfit kids but folks that are much older enjoying their golden years.
The official logline gives further insight into the show, saying: “In a seemingly picturesque retirement community in the New Mexico desert, a group of unlikely heroes must band together to stop an otherworldly threat from stealing the one thing they don’t have … time.” Jeffrey Addiss and Will Matthews (The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance) will showrun and executive produce the eight episode drama with the Duffers serving as executive producers alongside Hilary Leavitt on behalf of Upside Down Pictures.
“We’ve been fans of Jeff and Will’s writing for a long time, and when they pitched us their idea for The Boroughs, we immediately knew they had something very special on their hands,” Matt and Ross Duffer said in a statement. “While the heroes in The Boroughs have a few more years on them than the kids from Stranger Things, they are a similarly lovable bunch of misfits, and we can’t wait for you to join them on an adventure that is at turns scary, funny, and deeply touching.”
(Photo by Cate Young/© MGM)
Robocop and Legally Blonde are just two of over a half-dozen MGM projects Amazon is considering to adapt for the small screen. The streamer’s acquisition of the studio completed in March 2022 and a year later, a dozen titles have made the list for potential film and TV adaptations. Stargate, Fame, Barbershop, The Magnificent Seven, Pink Panther, and The Thomas Crown Affair are also of interest for further development. (Deadline)
A Galaxy Quest TV series is in the works at Paramount+. No cast or crew have been announced yet, aside from executive producer Mark Johnson who produced the 1999 film. The movie starred Tim Allen, Sigourney Weaver, Tony Shalhoub, Alan Rickman, and Sam Rockwell and followed the cast of a Star Trek–like TV series who discover that not only are aliens real, but they believe these actors to be the intergalactic heroes they portrayed on television and recruits them to help out in a real-life star war. In 2015, a previous attempt was made to reboot the cult comedy film, which would have reunited the movie’s cast, but those plans were canceled upon Rickman’s death. (Variety)
A Baywatch reboot is in early development at Fremantle with potential interest from a number of broadcasters and streamers. The original series starred David Hasselhoff, Pamela Anderson, David Charvet, Yasmine Bleeth, and Nicole Eggert and followed the lives of lifeguards who patrol L.A. beaches. (Deadline)
Don Cheadle’s production company This Radicle Act is developing Lamar Giles YA book The Getaway for TV alongside Sony Pictures Television. The story takes place in a near future reality where the world has fallen into chaos and an elite resort has sold shares to its rich clientele to live out their end of days in style. (Deadline)
A TV adaptation of The Shards, the podcast and novel by Bret Easton Ellis, is in development at HBO. The story takes place in 1981 and follows the exploits of 17 year old Bret and his privileged high school friends as a serial killer wreaks havoc across Los Angeles. (Deadline)
(Photo by Alfonso Bresciani/AMC)
The Anne Rice TV universe is continuing to expand at AMC. The company is developing a third series set in the world of the Talamasca, the secretive organization that monitors the supernatural world to keep humanity safe, which was first introduced in the witch-themed Mayfair Witches, starring Alexandra Daddario, Jack Huston, Tongayi Chirisa (pictured above right as Talamasca agent Ciprien Grieve, with Dennis Boutsikaris), and Harry Hamlin.
Damian Lewis and Alexander Cary, the executive producer of MGM+’s spy thriller A Spy Among Friends, based on the book by Ben Macintyre, are reuniting to adapt more of the author’s books. First on the agenda is a project based on The Spy and the Traitor: The Greatest Espionage Story of the Cold War, which follows Oleg Gordievsky, a former KGB colonel-turned London bureau chief in London who operated as a double agent for MI6. “Colditz: Prisoners of the Castle,” which is also being developed by Cary, follows a rag-tag group of British officers who plotted daring escapes from Nazi Germany from within a Gothic castle. (Deadline)
Olivia Wilde will direct and executive produce the TV adaptations of Jennifer Egan’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel A Visit from the Goon Squad and its 2022 sequel The Candy House. The first is a collection of 13 interconnected stories surrounding a record company executive named Bennie Salazar and his assistant, Sasha. The follow-up continues the saga. (Deadline)
People Hacker, the memoir of former burglar and con artist Jenny Radcliffe, is in TV development at Working Title. The goal is to turn Radcliffe’s life story into a thriller led by a strong female protagonist. (Deadline)
David Spade and Will Arnett will co-host Snake Oil, a new game show where contestants are pitched unique products by convincing entrepreneurs. Some are real, others are “Snake Oil Salesmen.” With the help of guest celebrity advisors, competitors must figure out which products are real and which are fake, for a chance to win life-changing money. The series is set to debut during the 2023-2024 season on Fox.
