‘Mammals’ Teaser: James Corden and Sally Hawkins Star in Prime Video Dramedy Series (TV News Roundup)
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Prime Video has released the official teaser trailer for the upcoming dark comedy-drama series “Mammals,” starring James Corden and Sally Hawkins. All six episodes will drop Nov. 11.
Directed by Stephanie Laing and written by Jez Butterworth, “Mammals” follows Jamie (Corden), a chef who discovers shocking secrets about his pregnant wife, Amandine (Melia Kreiling). Jamie searches for answers with the help of his brother-in-law Jeff (Colin Morgan), but stumbles upon cracks in Jeff’s marriage to Jamie’s sister Lue (Hawkins) along the way.
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The series is produced by Street Hassle, in association with Vertigo Films and Fulwell 73. Watch the teaser below.
Also in today’s TV news:
TRAILERS
Apple TV+ has released the official trailer of the original preschool series “Slumberkins,” premiering globally on the streamer Nov. 4.
From The Jim Henson Company, the series follows the adventures of Bigfoot, Unicorn, Sloth, Yak and Fox as they empower the emotional wellness of children by exploring feelings. The voice cast includes Brayden Morgan as Bigfoot, Olive Baity as Unicorn, Miles Flack as Sloth, Araceli Prasarttongosoth as Yak and Yonas Kibreab as Fox, with narration by Jennifer Hale.
“Slumberkins” is created for television by Alex Rockwell and features original music from Ingrid Michaelson, who serves as executive music producer. The Jim Henson Company’s Halle Stanford executive produces alongside Rockwell. Callie Christensen and Kelly Oriard, creators of the Slumberkins education brand, serve as co-executive producers. Dr. Dan Siegel, executive director of the Mindsight Institute, serves as an expert on attachment and human development.
Watch the full trailer below.
DATES
Prime Video announced the Dec. 13 premiere date for the unscripted series “Dr. Seuss Baking Challenge,” which will pit die-hard confectioners against one another for an eight-episode baking competition. The series will also be available for streaming on Amazon Freevee.
Battling for a grand prize of $50,000, contestants will concoct innovative culinary creations based on prompts inspired by Dr. Seuss characters like “The Grinch” and “The Cat in the Hat.” Renowned bakers Clarice Lam and Joshua John Russell will judge each dessert based on flavor, creativity and storytelling.
The series will be hosted by Tamera Mowry-Housley, who has previously won a Daytime Emmy for outstanding entertainment talk show host on “The Real” in 2018.
CASTING
ABC announced additional performers joining the upcoming “Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration” special. Comedian Martin Short will play Lumière, actor David Alan Grier will play Cogsworth, Rizwan Manji joins as Gaston’s loyal sidekick LeFou, and Jon Jon Briones will play Belle’s father Maurice. Country pop artist Shania Twain will join rising actor Leo Abelo Perry in playing mother-son duo Mrs. Potts and Chip.
The new additions come after previous announcements that singer-songwriter H.E.R. will play the role of Belle, actor Josh Groban will play the Beast, Joshua Henry will play Gaston and Rita Moreno will serve as the night’s narrator. Jon M. Chu will executive produce the special and Hamish Hamilton is set to direct.
The two-hour reimagining of the beloved “Beauty and the Beast” will be taped in front of a live audience at Disney Studios and will air Thursday, December 15, on ABC and on Disney+ the next day. The program will be presented under the The Wonderful World of Disney banner.
EXECUTIVES
Vice Media Group announced on Monday that Jesse Angelo, the president of global news and entertainment, will now be aided by a newly promoted team of leaders in managing the company’s news, publishing and TV divisions.
Cory Haik, who formerly operated as Vice Media’s chief digital officer, will now function as the chief operating officer for news and entertainment, working underneath Angelo.
“Cory has supercharged engagement and new platform innovation across our publishing brands — Vice, Refinery29 and i-D — while Morgan has done an outstanding job revitalising Vice TV and making it one of the shining success stories in the U.S. TV business,” Angelo said in a press release.
Morgan Hertzan, former executive vice president and general manager of Vice TV, was also promoted to president of Global TV with the added responsibility of overseeing VMG’s worldwide TV content distribution.
“I’m incredibly proud of Jesse, Cory and Morgan for all they’ve done to make Vice the leading youth culture brand around the world, leveraging new platforms to accelerate the growth of our business and breaking through with innovative and groundbreaking content that appeals to young consumers everywhere,” VMG CEO Nancy Dubuc said of the cemented leadership team.
RATINGS
According to Nielsen data, the Oct. 5 Season 2 premiere of “Chucky” on Syfy and USA Network drew 385,000 viewers in the adults 18-49 demographic and 675,000 total viewers. Those numbers are up 15% and 3% respectively compared to the series premiere.
“Reginald the Vampire,” which also premiered Oct. 5, also polled well, according to the network. The series debut was the highest rated premiere on Syfy since “Chucky” released its first episode in 2021. The first episode of “Reginald the Vampire” Season 1 reeled in 172,000 viewers in the adults 18-49 demographic and 448,000 total viewers.
INITIATIVES
NBCUniversal has launched its 2022-23 “Creator Accelerator” program, an industry-first initiative set to identify and develop the next generation of premium content creators. The inaugural cohort is comprised of 11 creators: Katie Florence, Daren Girdner, Emily Uribe, Gabriella Carter, Reece Feldman, Charlie Curtis-Beard, Erika Priscilla, Vijay Nazareth, Sara Nahusenay, Francesca Fiorentini and Serena Kerrigan.
The creators have signed development deals with Universal Studio Group to create original series that are authentic to their creative roots. Each individual will have their own NBCUniversal content development mentor to help develop both scripted and unscripted content, going through the greenlight process which includes pitches to business leaders from Universal Studio Group and Peacock.
“Social media has opened up a world of new possibilities for premium video content, including expanding the traditional definition of creative storytellers to include young, up-and-coming diverse creators who are releasing original content on social media almost daily. NBCUniversal is the first major media company to tap into this new generation of creative storytellers thanks to this new, first-of-its-kind accelerator program,” said Kathy Kelly-Brown, senior VP, strategic initiatives at NBCUniversal. “Empowering the next generation of creative storytellers is a major part of our commitment to diverse representation. By amplifying their ideas on the biggest platform in entertainment, we are leading the industry in creating the future of premium video content for our fans.”
PROGRAMMING
The Nacelle Company, the studio behind “The Movies That Made Us,” “The Toys That Made Us,” “Behind The Attraction,” “Center Seat: 55 Years of Star Trek” and more, have announced that their 24/7 FAST channel NacellePop will debut exclusively on Amazon Freevee on October 25.
Notable titles that will be available on the channel at launch are five seasons of “A Toy Store Near You,” “Discontinued,” “Craig Ferguson presents: Hobo Fabulous,” “That Guy… Who Was In That Thing,” “That Gal… Who Was In That Thing,” “Dons of Disco” and more.
This marks Nacelle’s second OTT channel after launching the Comedy Dynamics channel in 2014. The NacellePop channel will be distributed in partnership with Cinedigm.
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The CW announced the network’s lineup of this year’s holiday programming, which features nine new specials along with nostalgia-filled classics. Releases include “Popstar’s Best of 2022,” which will reflect on the most memorable trends and moments of 2022 with host Elizabeth Stanton, and the Season 3 finale of DC’s “Stargirl.”
The one-hour special “Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer” will kick off the marathon of seasonal content on Nov. 25 — the day after Thanksgiving. Nearly every night after at 8 p.m., more holiday specials will air, culminating in an encore presentation of the iHeartRadio Music Festival on New Year’s Eve. Read the full lineup for The CW Network’s holiday season programming below:
FRIDAY, NOV. 25
8:00-9:00PM “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer”
9:00-10:00PM “Scooby-Doo, Where Are You Now!”
SATURDAY, NOV. 26
8:00-10:00PM “Silent Night: A Song for the World”
THURSDAY, DEC. 1
8:00-10:00PM “Freddie Mercury – The Final Act”
MONDAY, DEC. 5
8:00-10:00PM “The Waltons’ Homecoming”
WEDNESDAY, DEC. 7
8:00-9:00PM “Stargirl” (Season Finale)
9:00-10:00PM “Greatest Holiday Commercials Countdown 2022”
THURSDAY, DEC. 8
8:00-10:00PM “Silent Night: A Song for the World” (Encore Presentation)
FRIDAY, DEC. 9
8:00-9:00PM “Penn & Teller: Merry Fool Us”
9:00-9:30PM “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” (Original Episode)
9:30-10:00PM “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” (Encore Episode)
MONDAY, DEC. 12
8:00-9:00PM “Dogs of the Year 2022”
9:00-10:00PM “Scooby-Doo, Where Are You Now!” (Encore Presentation)
WEDNESDAY, DEC. 14
8:00-9:00PM “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer” (Encore Presentation)
9:00-10:00PM “Masters of Illusion: Christmas Magic 2022”
THURSDAY, DEC. 15
8:00-10:00PM “Christmas Around the USA”
FRIDAY, DEC. 16
8:00-10:00PM “90th Annual Hollywood Christmas Parade”
SATURDAY, DEC. 17
8:00-9:30PM “iHeartRadio Jingle Ball”
9:30-10:00PM “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” (Encore Episode)
MONDAY, DEC. 19
8:00-9:00PM “Greatest Holiday Commercials Countdown 2022” (Encore Presentation)
9:00-10:00PM “World’s Funniest Animals: Christmas”
WEDNESDAY, DEC. 21
8:00-9:00PM “Beebo Saves Christmas”
9:00-9:30PM “World’s Funniest Animals” (Encore Episode)
9:30-10:00PM “World’s Funniest Animals” (Encore Episode)
THURSDAY, DEC. 22
8:00-9:30PM “iHeartRadio Jingle Ball” (Encore Presentation)
9:30-10:00PM “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” (Encore Episode)
FRIDAY, DEC. 23
8:00-9:00PM “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer” (Encore Presentation)
9:00-10:00PM “Masters of Illusion: Christmas Magic 2022” (Encore Presentation)
SATURDAY, DEC. 24
8:00-10:00PM “Christmas Around the World”
SUNDAY, DEC. 25
8:00-10:00PM “Christmas Around the USA” (Encore Presentation)
MONDAY, DEC. 26
8:00-10:00PM “25th Annual Family Film Awards”
TUESDAY, DEC. 27
8:00-10:00PM “Ocean Emergency: Currents of Hope”
WEDNESDAY, DEC. 28
8:00-9:00PM “Dogs of the Year 2022” (Encore Presentation)
9:00-9:30PM “World’s Funniest Animals” (Encore Episode)
9:30-10:00PM “World’s Funniest Animals” (Encore Episode)
THURSDAY, DEC. 29
8:00-9:00PM “Popstar’s Best of 2022”
9:00-9:30PM “Masters of Illusion” (Encore Episode)
9:30-10:00PM “Masters of Illusion” (Encore Episode)
FRIDAY, DEC. 30
8:00-10:00PM “iHeartRadio Music Festival Night 1” (Encore Presentation)
SATURDAY, DEC. 31
8:00-10:00PM “iHeartRadio Music Festival Night 1” (Encore Presentation)
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