TV News Roundup: Cartoon Network Sets ‘Adventure Time’ Miniseries for January
In today’s TV news, Cartoon Network will premiere a special “Adventure Time” miniseries, Netflix’s “Atypical” adds another recurring player, and more.
DATES
Cartoon Network will premiere an “Adventure Time” miniseries starting Jan. 30 at 7:30/6:30c and finishing on Feb. 2. “Adventure Time: Islands” is an eight-part journey into Finn the Human’s mysterious past. The four-night special event will answer one of the series’ most-asked questions: What happened to the humans?
National Geographic‘s “The Story of God with Morgan Freeman” will return for its second season on Jan. 16 at 9/8c. Season 2 of the series, which is part travel documentary, part exploration of faith, will see host Morgan Freeman continue to meet with faith leaders, scientists, and other experts to unravel some of life’s deepest questions. The first episode will feature a 9-year-old boy in Minnesota who Tibetan monks believe is the reincarnation of a lama, a Buddhist spiritual teacher.
Comedian Josh Denny will host Food Network’s newest series “Ginormous Food,” premiering Friday, Jan. 6 at 8/7c. The six-episode travelogue follows Denny throughout the United States, including Baltimore, Nashville and Philadelphia, as he finds ambitious chefs creating the most gigantic entrées. “Ginormous Food” is produced by Lusid Media.
CASTING
Jenna Boyd (“The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants,” “Code Black”) has joined Netflix‘s “Atypical” in a recurring role, Variety has learned exclusively. Boyd will play Paige, the classic Type-A overachiever who’s the girlfriend of autistic 18-year-old Sam (Keir Gilchrist). Boyd is repped by Berwick & Kovacik and TalentWorks.
Brendan Bradley, a.k.a. “The Staples Guy,” has booked guest roles on CBS’s new legal drama “Doubt” and OWN’s “The Haves and the Have Nots.” He will appear in episode 12 of “Doubt,” alongside Katherine Heigl and Laverne Cox, playing Hayden, a nervous young lawyer preparing for a character and fitness interview. On Tyler Perry’s OWN series, he will play a police officer in the third episode of the fourth season, which airs in Jan. 17.
SPECIALS
History will commemorate 2016 with the end-of-year special “This is History: 2016,” set to air Monday, Dec. 19 at 10 p.m. The program will extract public feedback from a Pew Research Center poll on the 10 most significant historic events of the year, and will look back on the most surprising and controversial moments from 2016. “This is History: 2016” is produced by A+E Networks, with Paul Cabana, Steve Ascher and Kristy Sabat serving as executive producers.
EXECUTIVES
Adult Swim has promoted Chris Hartley to vice president, on-air production and Ollie Green to vice president of animated production. Hartley is responsible for show launches, overseeing the on-air operating budget, planning, and supervising the production staff. She joined as a freelance producer in 2007. Green, who started in 2005 as a line producer, is responsible for leading all facets of animated production, including working with the network development team, series creators and partner studios.
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