To date, there are close to 80 shows under development. As fall season nears, the list will expectedly trim down to some 30 or less, with other productions put on hold or folded. Cast members will be revamped; lead stars, show-runners and directors will cancel their contracts.
But there is an emerging trend from all these new developments. There's a smorgasbord of programs to look forward to.
To sum it up, these are the stand-outs. These are the shows that's getting the early buzz. And these are the shows we will likely be talking about in the Fall.
Click on the actors' names to be led to their IMDb profile (so you will recognize 'em):
1. MUSICALS in the vein of GLEE:
- SMASH - produced by Steven Spielberg and starring Debra Messing, Jack Davenport and Katherine McPhee.
DESCRIPTION: a show-within-a-show vehicle about a group of people who come together to put on a broadway musical - HALLELUJAH - written by Marc Cherry (who created Desperate Housewives) and starring Jesse L. Martin and Frances O'Connor.
DESCRIPTION: drama about a tiny town in tennessee which finds itself being torn apart by the forces of good and evil
- AWAKENING - created by Bill Laurin. Lucy Griffiths, a young actress from Britain, has just been casted in one of the roles of the sister.
DESCRIPTION: a drama about two combative sisters who come of age amid the beginning of a zombie uprising
- PLAYBOY - Jeff Hephner (from Hellcats) from plays this Hugh Heffner-type character. Hephner on Heffner. Get that?
DESCRIPTION: drama about a group of women working as playboy bunnies in the now defunct new york club in the 1960s. - REM - only Jason Isaacs has signed so far, with Kyle Killen as creator. Kyle Killen is also the
creator of Lone Star. (It was one of my favorites this season, but only lasted 2 episodes.)
Minka Kelly
starring in
Charlie's Angels
DESCRIPTION: drama about the simultaneous and parallel lives of a detective who can not let go of any aspect of his fractured family after a horrible car accident.
- CHARLIE'S ANGEL - Stars Minka Kelly, Annie Ilonzeh and Rachael Taylor. This is an old favorite. I was Sabrina Duncan among my cousins, I think. Drew Barrymore comes aboard as Executive Producer.
DESCRIPTION: update of the 1976-1981 series about three women who work for a private investigation agency, this time set in miami - WONDER WOMAN - Adrienne Palicki will play the iconic role in a series that David E. Kelley will run.
DESCRIPTION: drama about the dc comics icon, a vigilante crime fighter in l.a. but also a successful corporate executive and a modern woman trying to balance all of the elements of her extraordinary life
5. COP SHOWS
- IDENTITY - Wentworth Miller is in talks with ABC to star in this one. But Angela Bassett has signed on.
DESCRIPTION: drama about an elite police unit formed to combat the explosion of identity-related crime
- GRIMM - Silas Weir Mitchell from Prison Break is one of its stars.
DESCRIPTION: fantasy cop drama revolving around characters from grimm's fairy tales - ALCATRAZ - JJ Abrams is bent on creating another hit with this and a cast that includes Jorge Garcia from Lost and Parminder Nagra from ER.
DESCRIPTION: drama about a group of missing alcatraz prisoners and guards who reappear in the present day and the efforts of a team of FBI agents to track them down and unravel the mystery behind their disappearance 30 years prior
So, what do you think?
You can also check this link for more about Who's Who in TV Pilot development this season.
*With sources from Deadline & The Futon Critic
