Thomas Ian Nicholas, Tom Arnold, Mark Pellegrino to Star in Comedy Series ‘Underdeveloped’ (TV News Roundup)

EJ Panaligan
·7 min read
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Thomas Ian Nicholas, Tom Arnold, Mark Pellegrino, Samm Levine, Shelley Regner, Kelly Arjen Charlene Amoia, Nolan River and Jaret Reddick are set to star in “Underdeveloped,” a limited series from Brian A. Metcalf, produced under his Black Jellybeans banner. The show focuses on a group of failed and inexperienced producers working together at a production company.

The series is written and executive produced by Metcalf, who will also serve as showrunner. Nicholas will also executive produce. The two have previously collaborated, producing the Lionsgate film “Adverse” last year. Nicholas is repped by Alex Czuleger at The Green Room and Goodman, Genow, Schenkman, Smelkinson & Christopher. Metcalf is repped by Michael Pio at Innovative Artists, Authentic Talent & Literary Management and Greenberg Glusker.

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Also in television news for today:

TRAILERS

Netflix has shared the trailer for the second season of “Ginny & Georgia,” which returns with 10 new episodes on Jan. 5.

Season 2 picks up with Ginny (Antonia Gentry) having to deal with the fact that Georgia (Brianne Howey) not only killed someone, but that she killed to protect Ginny. Georgia, with wedding planning on her mind, would rather leave the past in the past and move on. Additional cast on the show includes Diesel La Torraca, Jennifer Robertson, Felix Mallard, Sara Waisglass, Scott Porter, Raymond Ablack, Chelsea Clark and Katie Douglas.

Check out the trailer below.

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Po and his crew of warriors return in the second season of “Kung Fu Panda: The Dragon Knight” on Netflix on Jan. 12, and Variety has the first look trailer below. Jack Black and Rita Ora return, voicing Po and Wandering Blade, respectively.

Guest stars this season include Harvey Gullien as a frog named Pelpel, Richard Ayoade as a mole rat named Kyle, Shohreh Aghdashloo as pirate queen Forouzan and Melissa Villaseñor as excitable scientist Akna. From a museum heist in India to a volcanic eruption in Central America, the show’s heroes face danger at every turn on their journey to unravel the secrets surrounding Blade’s brother and his connection to magical weapons.

The fourth installment of the film franchise is in development and has a release date of March 8, 2024.

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Hulu has released the trailer for upcoming docuseries “Stolen Youth: Inside the Cult at Sarah Lawrence.” All three episodes will premiere on the streamer Feb. 9.

From director Zach Heinzerling, the series includes first-hand interviews with conman Larry Ray’s victims and incorporates personal audio tapes and video recordings to tell the story of his ten-year reign of influence over a group of young people. The series follows the story from the cult’s origins in 2010 on the Sarah Lawrence campus until its recent demise, when the last members find their own paths to survival.

Check out the trailer below.

DATES

Eugene Levy’s new Apple TV+ series “The Reluctant Traveler,” which he hosts and executive produces, will premiere globally on Feb. 24. The eight-episode series follows Levy as he visits destinations in Costa Rica, Finland, Italy, Japan, Maldives, Portugal, South Africa and the United States, exploring hotels and the places and cultures surrounding them.

Levy is described as not as jolly or enthusiastic as most travel show hosts, but he believes it is time for him to broaden his horizons. Levy packs his suitcase with some trepidation but hopes his experiences might lead to a whole new chapter in life, even if it means confronting some long-held fears.

“The Reluctant Traveler” is produced for Apple TV+ by Twofour. In addition to starring, Levy executive produces alongside David Brindley.

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“The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder” Season 2 will premiere on Feb. 1 on Disney+. From Disney Branded Television, the series is the revival of Disney’s “The Proud Family.” Season 2 guest stars include Gabrielle Union, Chance the Rapper, Leslie Odom, Jr., Holly Robinson Peete, Normani and more.

From creator and executive producer Bruce W. Smith and executive producer Ralph Farquhar, “The Proud Family” revival picks up the story of its central character, Penny Proud, and her family, parents Oscar and Trudy, twin siblings BeBe and CeCe, and grandmother Suga Mama. Also by Penny’s side are her loyal friends Dijonay Jones, LaCienega Boulevardez, Zoey Howzer, Maya Leibowitz-Jenkins and Michael Collins.

GUEST STARS

Ariana Grande will join “RuPaul’s Drag Race” host RuPaul as the guest judge for the two-episode season premiere on Jan. 6, MTV announced. Grande will accompany mainstay judges Michelle Visage and Ross Mathews as they welcome a new cast of queens to the show. Debuting on its new home of MTV, the first episode will be commercial free, while the second episode will have limited commercial interruption.

In the new season, 16 competing queens will bring their all to the runway in an effort to impress the judges as they vie for the ultimate title of “America’s Next Drag Superstar” and a grand prize of $200,000 — the highest amount in the herstory of the main franchise.

AWARDS

The Television Academy has launched its call for submissions for the 16th Television Academy Honors, which celebrates “programming that inspires, educates and motivates audiences around the world.”

Applications can be found at TelevisionAcademy.com/Honors/submit; deadline for submission is Jan. 13, 2023.

Eligible programs include fiction or nonfiction series, television movies, limited series or fiction/nonfiction specials, and short-form programming that aired from through the calendar 2022 year.

Previous honorees inlude “Black-ish” (ABC), “Dopesick” (Hulu), “I Am Greta (Hulu), “Insecure” (HBO), “Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj (Netflix), “Pose” (FX), “Reservation Dogs” (FX), “Stand Up to Cancer (ABC; CBS; NBC), “The Daily Show with Trevor Noah” (Comedy Central) and “Watchmen” (HBO).

EXECUTIVES

Warner Bros. Discovery Global Brands and Experiences, the division of Warner Bros. Discovery that encompasses the Global Consumer Products and Themed Entertainment businesses, the Company’s Franchise Development and Brand management, announced a new global leadership team for its Consumer Products business, formalizing the integration between two legacy divisions, Warner Bros. Consumer Products and Discovery Consumer Products.

The changes were announced by Pam Lifford, President, Warner Bros. Discovery Global Brands, Franchises, and Experiences, to whom the leaders will report.

The new global commercial leadership team under Lifford will be:

  • Julian Moon: Head of EMEA Consumer Products will also be Head of APAC Consumer
    Products. Based in London, Moon is a Warner Bros. veteran with extensive experience maximizing the potential of key brands and franchises to create best-in-class products and programs with licensees, retailers and partners.

  • Preston Lewis will continue as Head of LATAM Consumer Products and will also lead retail strategy and major retailer relationships for all of The Americas, partnering with Oberschelp in North America. During his Warner Bros. career, Lewis has held leadership positions in multiple regions and previously oversaw WBCP’s retail business development team.

  • Samantha Bushy will transition full-time as Head of Global E-commerce, bringing her substantial digital expertise to further build out the robust direct-to-consumer eCommerce experience worldwide. The renewed focus on digital consumer sales will complement the Company’s best-in-class retail partners with even more ways to engage customers of Warner Bros. Discovery’s iconic properties. Bushy joined the Company in 2021 from Apple, where she was Head of E-commerce, Global Marketplaces, WW Digital Channel.

  • Robert Oberschelp will now head North America Consumer Products. An industry veteran with deep expertise across licensing, brand, and product development, Oberschelp will also continue to oversee Global Brand Product, Franchise Management and Marketing.

Oberschelp’s newly combined team now supports all of North America, including a retail-facing category team consisting of:

  • Carolann Dunn, a veteran of legacy Discovery Consumer Products, will now lead a new category role for the region overseeing Home, Food, Health and Beauty.

  • Jessica Elliot will take on a new role leading the Fashion, Footwear, and Accessories category broadening her previous role in brand product.

  • Catherine Bachmaier will continue to lead Toys and Licensed Publishing.

Peter van Roden will continue to lead Global Themed Entertainment. The legacy-Discovery experiences group will now be part of this group.

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