Ronny Chieng Comedy Pilot About Brooklyn Nets Not Moving Forward at Hulu

BreAnna Bell A series of changes have taken place at Showtime. Variety has confirmed the network has canceled “Ziwe” after just two seasons and has picked up Mandy Patinkin’s “Seasoned” to series, delivering a six-episode order. Hosted and executive produced by comedian Ziwe Fumudoh, the talk show focused on presenting trending hot topics concerning race, politics and other cultural issues as well as musical numbers, interviews, guest stars and comedic sketches. Guests on Season 2 included Drew Barrymore, Rowan Blanchard, Blake Griffin, Emily Ratajkowski and Mia Khalifa, among others. The series first debuted in 2021. With the loss, that leaves Showtime without a current late night talk show following the cancellation of “Desus & Mero” (which Ziwe also served as a writer on before moving to her own show). The changes come as part of Showtime’s reevaluation of the programming slate after MTV Entertainment Group president and CEO Chris McCarthy stepped in to oversee the cabler once former CEO David Nevins left in October.

Onyx Collective has rounded out the series regular cast for Hulu comedy pilot 1266 starring Gabourey Sidibe. Karim Diané (One Of Us Is Lying), Kristin Dodson (Flatbush Misdemeanors) and Kassandra Lee Diaz (You Married Dat) are set as leads alongside Sidibe in the pilot from 20th Television.

EXCLUSIVE: Josh Lawson (Mortal Kombat), Kahyun Kim (Cocaine Bear) and Mekki Leeper (The Sex Lives of College Girls) have been cast in the NBC comedy pilot St. Denis Medical. They join previously announced leads Wendi McLendon-Covey and David Alan Grier.

Ryan Michelle Bathé is set as a lead opposite Terry Crews in JumpStart, CBS’ multi-camera comedy pilot based on Robb Armstrong’s long-running comic strip, Deadline has confirmed.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter Ryan Michelle Bathé has been cast in a leading role in CBS’ comedy pilot based on the “JumpStart” comic strip, Variety has learned exclusively. Bathé will now star in the pilot opposite previously announced cast member Terry Crews. The multi-cam pilot was originally ordered at CBS in February. The official logline states that the show “follows Joe (Crews), a cop, his wife Marcy (Bathé), a nurse, and Joe’s partner Crunchy. Joe and Marcy are young, hip, urban parents with old school values who are willing to sacrifice for their kids and have some laughs while doing it!” Marcy is further described as “a hard-working nurse who is naturally maternal and wise beyond her years. She and Joe share a close bond and are supportive of one another even when they don’t agree. The two have a good life in their middle-class Philly neighborhood with their two teen kids — meeting all challenges, and enjoying their share of goofy times as well.”

EXCLUSIVE: Dexter Darden (Chang Can Dunk), Chloe Bridges (Maggie) and Robert Buckley (One Tree Hill) have joined the cast of Amber Ruffin and Kenny Smith NBC comedy pilot, Non-Evil Twin.

found a new home at Starz, and “Ripley,” which landed at Netflix.Charles Babalola stars as the titular Zulu king in the series, which was originally ordered in 2021, alongside additional cast members Thapelo Mokoenaas, Warren Masemola, Aïssa Maïga, Thando DIomo, Charmaine Bingwa and Nkeki Obi-Melekwe.Originally titled “Shaka: King of the Zulu Nation,” the series, billed as an “epic drama centered around one man’s personal journey from stigmatized childhood to warrior king,” centers on “the story of the Zulu Empire chief Shaka and his unlikely rise to power, uniting multiple tribes across vast stretches of Africa in the early 19th century to transform his power into legend, on par with history’s most seminal figures,” per Showtime. Hailing from CBS Studios, Propagate and Fuqua Films, “King Shaka” is executive produced by Antoine Fuqua, Odebunmi, Awosika, Ben Silverman, Howard T.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter The Showtime limited series “King Shaka” is no longer moving forward at the premium cabler, Variety has confirmed. The series tells the story of the titular Zulu king, who will be played by Charles Babalola. According to an individual with knowledge of the production, filming had been mostly completed on the historical epic series and Showtime and producer CBS Studios plan to shop it to other outlets. This marks the latest completed series to be moved off Showtime as the network prepares to be merged with Paramount+. The drama “Three Women” recently left Showtime only to be picked up by Starz. Likewise, “Ripley” starring Andrew Scott moved to Netflix after originally being ordered at Showtime.

EXCLUSIVE: Tony winner David Alan Grier is set as a lead opposite Wendy McLendon-Covey in NBC comedy pilot St. Denis Medical.

Tom Sandoval and Raquel Leviss are ready to move on from Scandoval… possibly together?!

The state of Tom Sandoval and Raquel Leviss’ relationship is still up in the air.

Ellise Shafer The scripted pilot based on Jessica Simpson’s bestselling memoir “Open Book” is not moving forward at Amazon Freevee, Variety has confirmed. Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s period comedy “Western” has also been scrapped, though both potential series are now being shopped elsewhere. The pilot for “Open Book” was ordered by Amazon Freevee back in October, with Tom Kapinos set to write and executive produce and Adam Bernstein on board as a director and executive producer. Katelyn Tarver would play Sadie Sparrow, a young singer based on Simpson, while John Stamos was cast as her older songwriter, Butch. Over time, the two would develop a connection that went beyond music.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter Essence Atkins and Tetona Jackson have signed on to star in the untitled CBS comedy pilot starring Damon Wayans and Damon Wayans Jr., Variety has learned. In addition, Andy Ackerman has signed on to direct the pilot. The multi-cam pilot was first announced at CBS in February. Per the official logline, “Legendary talk radio host and happily divorced ‘Poppa’ (Wayans) has his point of view challenged at work when a new female co-host (Atkins) is hired, and at home where he finds himself still parenting his adult son (Wayans Jr.), a brilliant dreamer who is trying to pursue his passion while being a responsible father and husband.” Atkins character is named Dr. Ivy Reed. She is further described as “intelligent, savvy, and bold” and hosts the radio show “Ask Dr. Reed,” where she gives “helpful advice to listeners with a modern approach on life” before she is brought in as Poppa’s new co-host.

Essence Atkins and Tetona Jackson are joining Damon Wayans and Damon Wayans Jr in the latter pair’s CBS family comedy.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Jimmy O. Yang and Amazon are back in the funny business: The “Crazy Rich Asians,” “Love Hard” and “Silicon Valley” star has lined up his second standup comedy special with streamer Prime Video, titled “Guess How Much?” Set to launch May 2, the event is a followup to Yang’s first Amazon comedy special, “Good Deal,” which launched in August 2020. In his new standup engagement, Yang will poke fun at “love languages, loser friends, and negotiating with his Asian parents,” per Prime Video. Aside from his memorable parts in “Crazy Rich Asians,” Netflix’s “Love Hard” and HBO’s “Silicon Valley,” Yang is best known as the author of “How to American: An Immigrant’s Guide to Disappointing Your Parents,” which chronicles his journey from life as a young Chinese immigrant to becoming a comedian and actor.

Hulu is not moving forward with a pilot that was set to star comedian Ronny Chieng as the general manager of the Brooklyn Nets.

Brooklyn Nine-Nine alum Terry Crews has been tapped as the lead and also will executive produce JumpStart, CBS’ multi-camera comedy pilot based on Robb Armstrong’s long-running comic strip. Wayne Conley (The Best Man) penned the TV adaptation for the project from Aaron Kaplan’s Kapital Entertainment, Wendi Trilling’s TrillTV and CBS Studios. Phill Lewis will direct and executive produce the pilot, replacing Kelly Park due to changes in the production schedule; Park is directing NBC’s comedy pilot Non-Evil Twin instead.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter Terry Crews will star in the CBS comedy pilot based on the “JumpStart” comic strip, Variety has learned. The multi-cam pilot was originally ordered at CBS in February. The official logline states that the show “follows Joe (Crews), a cop, his wife Marcy, a nurse, and Joe’s partner Crunchy. Joe and Marcy are young, hip, urban parents with old school values who are willing to sacrifice for their kids and have some laughs while doing it!” The character Joe is further described as “a devoted husband , son, father and Philadelphia police officer. He is also a proud Black man and often feels pressured to be flawless in each of his roles, especially in light of controversies surrounding cops. He is a charming and exuberant role model in his community. Joe loves his wife and family, but does come up short in hilarious and endearing ways that keep audiences cheering for him.”

EXCLUSIVE: As The Goldbergs is wrapping its 10-season run on ABC, series star Wendi McLendon-Covey has been tapped to lead another single-camera broadcast comedy, NBC pilot St. Denis Medical.