Daphne Zuniga to Reunite With ‘Melrose Place’ Co-Star Grant Show on CW’s ‘Dynasty’ (EXCLUSIVE)

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterCartoon Network Studios and NFL alumnus Trevor Pryce’s animation studio have teamed up on a content development deal designed to discover emerging creators and artists from underrepresented communities, Variety has learned exclusively.Pryce’s Mid-Atlantic-region-focused Outlook Company will host the initiative out of its recently formed animated projects incubator Neru Projects. The program will launch with six local participants who will have creative executives at Cartoon Network Studios and Neru Projects to shepherd their ideas from concept to pitch through the development of a series bible.Per Cartoon Network Studios, “At least one project will be selected to begin formal development at Cartoon Network Studios and Outlook Company but, through the program, all participants will learn how to collaborate with creative partners to develop and package their original animated series ideas.” The inaugural group for the development program includes these six individuals, who “represent diversity in race, gender, and age and will use their unique perspectives to shine a light on their homes, communities, and personal experiences through animation”:“Elevating original and diverse creative voices is one of our top priorities at Cartoon Network Studios,” Sam Register, president of Cartoon Network Studios and Warner Bros.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterGeekWire co-founder Jonathan Sposato has launched JoySauce Network, a new ad-supported multimedia platform aimed at the “American Asian” audience and its allies, Variety has learned exclusively.The site, which went live Wednesday morning, boasts “multiple channels of vibrant digital programming dedicated to celebrating both new and established American Asian talent.” JoySauce Network notes the use of “American Asian rather than Asian American” is its way of “shifting the center of gravity, while recognizing that each of us chooses how the pieces of our identities fit together.”Per JoySauce Network, “Viewers can expect unscripted and scripted streaming shows, licensed movies from respected directors and writers in the Asian diaspora, stand-up comedy specials from emerging talent, documentaries, and more in a weekly episode format. The site will also publish original editorial from some of the community’s most talented writers, aiming to represent the full spectrum of American Asian narratives, covering culturally relevant topics in lifestyle, food, entertainment, pop culture, education, romance and more.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterSPOLER ALERT: Do not read if you have not watched “The Night Before the Wedding,” the April 26 episode of “This Is Us.”There are four episodes left of “This Is Us” following Tuesday’s installment, which gave Pearson fans the long-awaited answer to the question of who is Kevin (Justin Hartley) going to marry without actually showing us who Kevin marries. The episode ended with the romantic reunion of high-school-sweethearts-turned-divorced-couple Kevin and Sophie (Alexandra Breckenridge) at Kate’s (Chrissy Metz) second wedding, and cheers from the whole family over those two crazy kids finally figuring it out, with the heavy implication (confirmed by Hartley and Breckenridge) it will result in them tying the knot for good.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterNBCUniversal Television and Streaming has promoted Orit Blankrot to senior vice president of entertainment business and legal affairs, Variety has learned exclusively.In her new role, Blankrot, who most recently served as vice president of entertainment business and legal affairs for NBCU’s TV and streaming arm, has increased oversight of business and legal affairs for NBCUniversal’s syndication studios. This includes Stamford (Conn.) Media Center’s first-run programming, E! News and co-productions for distribution on both internal and external platforms.As SVP of the department, she will report to Inge Van Herle, the head of entertainment business and legal affairs for NBCUniversal Television and Streaming.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterAfrican American-founded, faith-based channel Impact Network is making a big push into entertainment and lifestyle content with the ramping up of its Saturday programming slate, the hiring of a new chief creative officer and executive producer of original content, and the launch of a 6,000-foot production facility in Detroit with a music division, Variety has learned exclusively.The privately owned Impact Network has a reach of 80 million homes and distribution deals with DirecTV, Comcast Xfinity, Charter Spectrum, Verizon Fios, Frontier, Cable Bahamas, Cox and Altice USA. Founder and CEO Bishop Wayne T.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterHBO’s “House of the Dragon” cost under $20 million per episode to produce its 10-episode first season, which debuts Aug. 21, a source close to production told Variety.For comparison, “Game of Thrones” cost HBO around $100 million to per season.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer“Abbott Elementary” got an A+ from ABC on its season finale, tripling its ratings with seven days of delayed viewing across DVRs, Hulu and other digital platforms, Variety has learned exclusively.The 9 o’clock on Tuesdays freshman comedy managed an initial 0.6 rating among adults 18-49 and 2.8 million total viewers for its April 12 finale, according to Live + Same Day data from Nielsen. Adding in a week of multiplatform viewing, the episode jumped 200% to a 1.8 rating, tying the show’s series high, and added 3.1 million viewers to reach 5.9 million total, per ABC.In looking at this same week-out metric, the “Abbott Elementary” finale’s key demo rating is up 50% from the show’s Dec.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterSPOLER ALERT: Do not read if you have not yet watched “Matryoshka,” the Season 2 finale episode of “Russian Doll.”In Season 2, “Russian Doll” broke out of its first season’s “Groundhog Day”-style time-loop format with a “Quantum Leap”-like time-travel device that allowed Nadia (Natasha Lyonne) and Alan (Charlie Barnett) to jump into the bodies of their deceased loved ones by taking a trip on the New York City subway. Nadia becomes her mother, Lenora “Nora” (Chloë Sevigny), in the East Village in 1982, and grandmother Vera (Irén Bordán, younger version Ilona McCrea), in World War II-era Budapest, while Alan is inhabiting his grandmother Agnes (Carolyn Michelle Smith) in Germany during the Cold War in 1944.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterDiscovery+ is set to launch a new docuseries focused on Black food history in America from producer Viola Davis, featuring scholar and cookbook author Caroline Randall Williams as host, Variety has learned exclusively.The four-episode show, titled “Hungry for Answers,” will follow Williams as she travels the country, “uncovering the fascinating, essential, and often untold Black stories behind some of America’s classic and emblematic food and spirits,” per the Warner Bros. Discovery-owned streamer.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterWhip Media has hired Disney global integration and digital distribution operation’s strategy executive Artin Nazarian as vice president of global enterprise account management, Variety has learned exclusively.In his newly created role, Nazarian will develop and grow the company’s enterprise platform customer relationships worldwide, including focusing on strategy, product adoption and revenue.Whip brings Nazarian on board on the heels of  the commercial launch of the Whip Media Exchange, described by the company as “a first-of-its-kind global licensing and research platform for film and TV content.” Whip will model the product, along with the company’s CVM and CVMi platforms, at the 2022 NAB Show next week in Las Vegas. Prior to joining Whip, Nazarian spent nearly two decades at Disney, where he most recently served as head of global integration and digital distribution operation’s strategy.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterAll hail the viscount. The second season of “Bridgerton” has knocked the show’s first season out of the No.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer“All Rise” has won the 2022 SeeHer Programming Award, which will be presented to the show’s new home channel Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) during the fourth annual SeeHer SheFront Tuesday, Variety has learned exclusively.The Simone Missick-led series is a courthouse drama that follows the lives of its judges, prosecutors, and public defenders, as they work with bailiffs, clerks and police to get justice for the people of Los Angeles amidst a flawed legal system. “All Rise,” which was canceled at CBS after two seasons last May and then revived by OWN in September, will debut its third season in June. OWN is airing the first two seasons ahead of the Season 3 premiere.Missick, who plays Judge Lola Carmichael, executive produces alongside showrunner Dee Harris-Lawrence, Michael M.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterMarvel is kicking butt and eating nuts with the launch of a scripted “Squirrel Girl” podcast that serves as a continuation of the comic book series from Ryan North, Variety has learned exclusively.The six-episode SiriusXM podcast series titled “Marvel’s Squirrel Girl: The Unbeatable Radio Show,” which stars Milana Vayntrub of AT&T-ad fame as Doreen Green/Squirrel Girl and is written by North, debuted across multiple platforms on Monday. The podcast is produced by Radio Point, the podcast arm of “I Think You Should Leave” and “Life & Beth” production company Irony Point.Here’s the official description for the “Squirrel Girl” podcast: “Squirrel Girl has taken down Thanos and Doctor Doom — but now she faces something far more terrifying… living authentically.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer“Bridgerton” Season 2 has landed the title of Netflix’s third-most popular English-language TV series — a list that is calculated based on shows’ first 28 days on the streaming service — in just 17 days.Per Netflix’s newly released Top 10 data for April 4-10, “The series had 115.75M hours viewed on the English TV list, appearing in the Top 10 in 91 countries, making it the most viewed title for the third week in a row. The season also entered the Most Popular list at #3 with 560.50M hours viewed.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterThe CMT Music Awards aired for the first time on CBS and Paramount Plus Monday night, drawing 5.16 million viewers for the live telecast in early Nielsen numbers, which is up 521% from last year’s show on Paramount-owned cable channel CMT.The 5.16 million total viewer tally accounts for both linear ratings on CBA and live streams via television sets for Paramount Plus and other digital CBS platforms. The final Live + Same Day ratings for the 2022 CMT Awards, including out-of-home-viewing, will be released later Tuesday.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterTrevor Noah came home to “The Daily Show” studio at 733 11th Avenue in Manhattan on Monday, just over two years after he last taped an episode of the Comedy Central late-night series there in front of an in-studio audience.For his first show back, Noah, who hosted the Grammys just over a week ago, brought in a vaccinated, masked-up crowd to give him the comedian-audience exchange he’d been sorely lacking in his many, many at-home “Daily Show” tapings. Of course, the COVID-19 pandemic has changed everything, including how Noah interacts with his in-person viewers.“I feel like you’re all robbing me,” Noah joked while chatting with the audience, where Variety was in attendance, from his desk during a commercial break.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterWarner Bros. Discovery is not going with the “initial wordmark” revealed last June as its official logo.Variety has obtained a low-res copy of a new logo that is being circulated on internal memos at Discovery and WarnerMedia Friday, ahead of the expected close of the merger transaction later today.Discovery did not immediately respond to request for comment on the Warner Bros.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer“Dancing With the Stars” is moving to Disney Plus after airing for 30 seasons airing on ABC, Variety has confirmed.The show has received a two-season renewal at the Disney-owned streaming service for Seasons 31 and 32, with the new season to debut in the fall. “DWTS” will be the first live series to stream on Disney Plus.Variety has confirmed the series will not air repeats on ABC and strictly be available via Disney Plus.“’Dancing with the Stars’ has entertained fans for 16 years on ABC, and we are excited to bring this beloved show exclusively to Disney+ as the platform’s first-ever live series,” said Kareem Daniel, chairman, Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterLamorne Morris’ Keef Knight ended Season 1 of the Hulu comedy “Woke” with all eyes on him, as the Black cartoonist was thrust into the spotlight after standing up against the white police officer who had racially profiled and assaulted him in the series premiere. Now that the apolitical artist-turned-activist has a following, what is he going to do with it in the show’s Season 2, which launches Friday?“That’s 100% the thing.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterChip and Joanna Gaines’ Magnolia Network will move under HBO’s purview upon the completion of Discovery’s acquisition of WarnerMedia, which will result in the launch of Warner Bros. Discovery Monday, Variety has learned exclusively.Allison Page, president of Magnolia, which is a joint venture between the Gaineses and Discovery, Inc., will report directly to HBO and HBO Max chief Casey Bloys.