50 Cent, Mary J. Blige to Produce Musical Comedy Series With Put Pilot Order at ABC

Joe Otterson TV ReporterThe upcoming Apple dramedy series “Physical” is rounding out its cast.In addition to previously announced series lead Rose Byrne, the cast of the show will also include Paul Sparks, Rory Scovel, Loy Taylor Pucci, Della Saba, Dierdre Friel, Ashley Liao.“Physical” follows Sheila (Byrne), a woman struggling in her life as a quietly tortured housewife in a 1980s Southern California beach community.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterFreefrom has ordered a pilot for the comedy “Single Drunk Female,” Variety has learned.In the series, after a spectacularly embarrassing public breakdown, irreverent alcoholic Samantha Fink (Sofia Black-D’Elia) is forced to move back home with her “Smother” (Ally Sheedy) to sober up and avoid jail time.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterABC has ordered the single-camera comedy “Home Economics” to series.The series will air on the broadcast network in Spring 2021. The show was originally developed as part of the 2020 pilot season.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterThe HBO Max comedy pilot “Minx” is rounding out its cast.Idara Victor, Oscar Montoya, Jessica Lowe, Lennon Parham, and Michael Angarano have all been cast in series regular roles, with Jake Johnson attached to guest star.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterIn a competitive situation, the George Lopez drama series “Once Upon a Time in Aztlan” has been set up at Amazon for development, Variety has learned exclusively.Lopez will star in and executive produce the one-hour series under his Travieso Productions banner.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterDC Comics character Naomi could soon be coming to The CW thanks to Ava DuVernay and former “Arrow” writer and executive producer Jill Blankenship.DuVernay and Blankenship are attached to write and executive produce “Naomi.” The potential series follows a teen girl’s journey from her small northwestern town to the heights of the multiverse.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterThe upcoming Amazon series “Outer Range” has rounded out its main cast.Lewis Pullman, Noah Reid, Shaun Sipos, and Isabel Arraiza have all been cast in the series, Variety has learned.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterIssa Rae and Adam McKay are teaming up to adapt the Serial Productions podcast “Nice White Parents” into a half-hour series at HBO, Variety has learned.The project has received a pilot commitment at the premium cabler.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterPeacock is developing a drama series about the FBI’s notorious COINTELPRO program, Variety has learned exclusively.Set in 1965, the series centers on Amos Harvey, a conservative black cop and veteran of the Korean War, who is forcibly recruited into the FBI’s secret task-force, COINTELPRO. His job is to infiltrate the Civil Rights movement to destroy the organizations from the inside.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterArmie Hammer has signed on to star in “The Offer” at Paramount Plus, which will tell the behind-the-scenes story of the making of “The Godfather.”Hammer will star as Al Ruddy, who produced “The Godfather” back in 1972.More to come…

Joe Otterson TV ReporterNetflix has ordered a comedy series called “God’s Favorite Idiot” from Melissa McCarthy and Ben Falcone, Variety has learned.The streamer has commissioned 16 episodes of the series, in which both McCarthy and Falcone will star. Falcone wrote the series, with both he and McCarthy also serving as executive producers via their company On the Day.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterThe “Blindspotting” series at Starz has cast several key roles as production kicks off in Los Angeles and Oakland, Variety has learned exclusively.Along with previously announced series lead Jasmine Cephas Jones, the eight-episode, half-hour dramedy will also star Benjamin Earl Turner, Atticus Woodward, Jaylen Barron, and Candace Nicholas-Lippman.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterEugenio Derbez is set to star in a new comedy series titled “Acapulco” that has been ordered to series at Apple, Variety has learned.The half-hour series, which will be shot in both Spanish and English, is inspired by the film “How to Be a Latin Lover,” in which Derbez starred and produced.In “Acapulco,” a young Mexican man’s dream comes true when he gets the job of a lifetime at the hottest resort in Acapulco.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterFacebook Watch is set to launch the first-ever interactive AI reality series, titled “Rival Peak,” on Dec. 2.Hailing from dj2 Entertainment, Pipeworks Studios, and Genvid Technologies, the series places twelve AI contestants in the Pacific Northwest where they must survive elimination and solve the mystery that brought them together.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterHistory Channel is developing a pair of drama miniseries, including one executive produced by “Vikings” creator Michael Hirst.The first is titled “The Plague Year,” which hails from writer Coleman Herbert with Hirst executive producing. The series is described as a portrait of 1665 London, during one of the all-time worst outbreaks of the Bubonic Plague.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterApple has given a straight-to-series order to a drama series starring Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Variety has learned.The series is titled “Surface” and hails from writer and executive producer Veronica West. Plot details on the series are being kept under wraps except to say that it is a psychological thriller.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterFelicity Huffman and “The Peanut Butter Falcon” star Zack Gottsagen are attached to lead a comedy at ABC that has landed a pilot production commitment.The untitled single-camera comedy stars Huffman as the unlikely owner of a minor league baseball team.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterIsabella Gomez is set to lead the “Head of the Class” reboot pilot currently in the works at HBO Max, Variety has confirmed.News of Gomez’s casting comes just one day after it was announced that “One Day at a Time” had been canceled for a second time.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter“Black Lightning” will end its run on The CW after its upcoming Season 4, Variety has learned.“When we first started the ‘Black Lighting’ journey, I knew that Jefferson Pierce and his family of powerful Black Women would be a unique addition to the super hero genre,” series developer and executive producer Salim Akil said in a statement.