Banijay Iberia, Alex de la Iglesia Strike Strategic Production Alliance

ABC has made its new series orders.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterABC has picked up “The Rookie” spinoff starring Niecy Nash-Betts as well as the drama “Alaska” starring Hilary Swank and the comedy “Not Dead Yet” starring Gina Rodriguez for the 2022-2023 broadcast season.“The Rookie” spinoff aired as a two-part backdoor pilot during “The Rookie’s” fourth season. The spinoff is titled “The Rookie: Feds.” Nash-Betts stars as Simone Clark, the oldest rookie in the FBI Academy.

USA Network has ordered a slew of series including a bar competition series from Blake Shelton and Carson Daly, a social experiment fronted by former American Idol mentor Bobby Bones and an Alaska-set survival competition from the producers of Deadliest Catch.

Ioan Gruffudd and Bianca Wallace looked besotted as they attended their first red carpet together. The couple officially confirmed their relationship in October last year following Liar actor Ioan’s split from his wife Alice Evans. Ioan, 48, and Bianca, 29, were attending a charity night for the MS society, a condition which Bianca has been open about suffering from in the past.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefMumbai-based Banijay Asia has struck a deal with ITV Studios’ Armoza Formats to bring an official adaptation of the award-winning Canadian mini-series, “Vertige,” to screen.The high-profile French-language show deconstructs the alleged suicide of a young girl, Daphne Roussel. Banijay Asia will reimagine the psychological thriller for the Indian audience.With a remit focused on India and, increasingly Southeast Asia, Banijay Asia is a joint venture between Banijay, Stéphane Courbit’s TV production and distribution powerhouse behind “Survivor” and “Peaky Blinders,” and veteran producer Deepak Dhar.The Banijay parent company this week announced that it is set to go public and launch on the Amsterdam stock exchange through a newly-created special purpose acquisition company or SPAC.

confirmed Wednesday.The network accused the Israeli army of targeting the veteran war correspondent, a Jerusalem-born U.S. citizen who had come to be known as “the face of Al Jazeera in Palestine.” The Israeli Defense force has denied that, suggesting she might have been hit by Palestinian fire.Abu Akleh was covering early-morning Israeli raids on a refugee camp in the city of Jenin.

Al Jazeera has accused the Israeli authorities of a “blatant murder, violating international laws and norms,” after one of its journalists was killed amidst live fire in the West Bank this morning.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefShireen Abu Akleh, veteran TV journalist for Al Jazeera, has been shot and killed in the West Bank. Abu Akleh, 51, was covering an Israeli army raid on the Jenin refugee camp in the early hours of Wednesday morning. Her death was confirmed by the Palestine health ministry and later by Israeli sources.

Alaska Thunderfuck is bringing together a cast of unforgettable characters for a new musical!The cast recording ofdrops next week — featuring performances from an epic cast of drag, theater and LGBTQ+ icons -- and only ET is exclusively debuting the first track off the album, «Drag Is Expensive.»The song features vocals by Monét X Change, Divina De Campo, Nick Adams, Lagoona Bloo and Max von Essen, and captures the energy of the upcoming musical, which tells the story of two rival drag bars and the struggling queens trying to make enough money to keep living their dreams.«When I first started drag, we were always broke. We would do anything to scrape together a few dollars to pay the light bill and buy a pack of beer,» Alaska told ET in an exclusive statement.

Naman Ramachandran Banijay Rights, the global distribution arm of Banijay, has revealed the first international adaptation of hit U.K. format “Starstruck,” with a deal confirmed in South America.The show launched earlier this year to a consolidated 4.7 million viewers on U.K. broadcaster ITV and streamer ITV Hub and was re-commissioned for a second series.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterVictoria Pedretti will no longer star in the “Saint X” series at Hulu, Variety has learned, with Alycia Debnam-Carey stepping in to take over her role.According to an individual with knowledge of the production, Pedretti decided to leave the show over creative differences. The news also comes after it was reported that production on the series had shut down in the Dominican Republic after a large number of crew members walked off the show reportedly over a pay dispute.“Saint X” is based on the Alexis Schaitkin novel of the same name.

Train passengers could see Bank Holiday plans ruined as train staff are due to strikes this weekend.

Naman Ramachandran Banijay U.K.’s Kudos has signed a creative partnership deal with “Peaky Blinders” creator Steven Knight. Under the terms of the deal, Kudos will get a first look at future U.K. based projects originated by Knight and support the Birmingham film and TV industry.Kudos, the production company behind “Deadwater Fell” and “Grantchester,” is also producing the upcoming BBC One series “SAS Rogue Heroes,” created by Knight.

Banijay Iberia is getting into Spanish horror drama after striking a partnership deal with Álex de la Iglesia and Carolina Bang’s scripted producer Pokeepsie Films. Deadline understands Banijay has made an equity investment in the Madrid-based company, which is behind HBO Max mystery horror drama 30 Coins.