NEWS
In Production: Can You Survive A Horror Movie?
Jan 7th
Time for a bit of shameless self promotion here at Remote Patrolled.
As you may have noticed my postings have become a tad less frequent over the last couple of months due to the fact that I’ve become extremely busy on the TV production front (as well as managing Angry Trainer Fitness which has soared recently!)
I’m currently Executive Producing a brand new series for A&E set to launch in the Spring – but I’m also thrilled to announce a new show that my production company, Savannah Media, is currently working on (and which was announced in Variety magazine yesterday)
The show’s called Can You Survive A Horror Movie and takes a look at the science behind horror movies – of which I’m a HUGE fan (yes, I have indeed seen every single Friday 13th, Elm Street and Halloween!)
We’re producing the show for Chiller, the horror network who are really ramping up their original production at the moment. Last year the network premiered the zombie movie Remains, with more original films to follow in the new year. And on the unscripted front the network is also very busy – shooting a show about haunted house enthusiasts (American Scream) and a behind the scenes look at the More >
Is Ryan Seacrest REALLY Worth $45 Million To American Idol?
Jan 6th
We’re just a few days away from the 11th season premiere of American Idol – and there’s a new rumor doing the rounds at the moment. Is long time Idol host Ryan Seacrest on the way out – set to be replaced by a cheaper alternative?
As everyone knows, Ryan has been with the Idol franchise since day one and along with Randy Jackson is the only remaining member of the original on camera team. Co-host Brian Dunkleman famously departed after season 1, judge Paula Abdul left at the end of Season 8 and Idol’s main mean man Simon Cowell split in 2010 after 9 seasons with the show.
Through it all the Idol juggernaut has remained as strong as ever – still regularly pulling in audiences in excess of 20 million on a weekly basis. So now apparently Fox are starting to wonder if Seacrest is really essential to the franchise. With a salary of $15 million a year and a deal that expires at the end of the new season, the network are reportedly wondering if they could opt for a cheaper host going forwards. But is Fox risking its smash hit franchise in order to save (quite a few) bucks? More >
Seeking Male and Female Hosts For New TV Project!
Nov 10th
Hi everyone – exciting times here at Remote Patrolled!
As you may have noticed I’ve been posting a little less over the last few weeks – simply because I’ve been so darn busy in my day job as a TV Producer!
I’m in the middle of Executive Producing a new series for A&E at the moment which is shaping up to be a terrific show. Can’t tell you any details on the project for now – but rest assured I’ll be revealing all in 2012.
In the meantime I’m still super busy via my production company Savannah Media – the usual mix of pitching, developing and consulting. And of course there’s this site Remote Patrolled, our sister site Angry Trainer Fitness (which just hit record traffic levels) and a couple of other online projects we’re working on at the moment.
I’m also very excited to announce that Savannah Media recently sold a TV project to a major cable network – and we’re on the hunt for hosts to spearhead our new show.
Take The Poll: What’s Your Favorite Music Competition Show?
Nov 4th
Hey everyone – it’s Poll time here again at Remote Patrolled. Last time around we asked you to name your favorite new show of the Fall.
The result – The X Factor was our outright winner with 32%, with Revenge following behind in second place with 23%. I have to say though – Revenge gets better and better every week – so who knows where it would have placed a couple of months down the line…
For our next poll we’re sticking with the X Factor – a little. The question is simple – what’s your favorite music competition show?
Now I would have to say The X Factor personally, and that’s not just because it’s the new kid on the block. I’ve been following the Brit version for years and I just think the show is a more interesting format than the other singing contests out there – I love the idea of groups vs kids vs older performers. Plus I love all the OTT production which is so much more interesting to me than a singer simply stuck on a stage on their own.
I USED to love American Idol – but season 9 (Simon’s last) was wobbly – and season 10 was a disaster. More >
Ratings Roundup: 23rd October 2011
Oct 23rd
Winners and Losers From The Last 7 Days
WINNERS
HORROR TV: It’s been a big week for horror on TV as Halloween approaches and ratings for scary series continue to rise
First up of course is The Walking Dead. AMC’s zombie epic blasted back onto our screens on Sunday night with an amazing 7.25 million viewers and an eye popping 3.8 18-49 demo number (a further 2.17 million watched the encore showing immediately after the show). That’s the biggest 18-49 rating for a cable drama series EVER!
Meanwhile over on FX, American Horror Story is proving to be quite the hit. After a predictable week 2 decline, this week Story bounced back, up over 100,000 in viewers, and scoring 2.58 million and a 1.5 18-49 share. Plus with reviewers and audiences starting to embrace the show – and an Entertainment Weekly cover this week – look for American Horror Story to continue to grow in the weeks to come.
And finally, we’ve The Vampire Diaries over on The CW. This week the teen friendly vampire drama managed 3.03 million viewers and a 1.4 18-49 share – the ONLY show on The CW all week to climb above the 3 million mark (most of the CW shows can’t even bring More >
The Emmy Awards 2011: What Did You Think?
Sep 19th
So what did all of you out there think of this year’s Emmy Awards?
Well given that the night’s two big winners were Modern Family and Mad Men – exactly the same as last year – it’s hard not to feel a certain sense of deja vu.
This was an awards show with few real surprises or moments of spontaneity – but in a way maybe that’s for the best. Whenever the awards bash did move into more unexpected territory I have to admit I found myself cringing! Take the Lonely Island guys for example. The sex-filled songs work fine as part of a video, but on their own and on a giant stage it all became a tad too knowing and uncomfortable. I’d rather the guys had created a brand new song and video to play in during the show’s slower moments.
Speaking of cringe-inducing songs, am I the only one who found Jane Lynch’s opening number a total chore to get through? I understand the need to open a show with a big song and dance number, but coming off the back of Jimmy Fallon’s amazing opening last year (and Neil Patrick Harris similarly superlative opener the year before) this truly More >
The New Dancing With The Stars Cast: Cue The Complaining!
Aug 30th
So as you probably heard, last night ABC unveiled the latest cast competing for a tacky mirrorball trophy on Dancing With The Stars, season 13.
And the response was… well completely predictable!
As usual when these kind of announcements are made, bloggers and commentators across the web are weighing in today with their usual ‘where are the stars’ sniping. Nikki Finke is as sneering as ever, proving once again that while she’s a great industry reporter she’s pretty out of touch when it comes to pop culture.
I’ll be totally honest – I’m not a Dancing With The Stars fan. I’ve tried to get into the show many times in the past but I find it corny, silly and frankly rather dull. For me there are no stakes or real jeopardy and I honestly don’t understand the show’s appeal.
NOT Coming To A TV Near You: The Locke And Key Trailer
Aug 25th
As you doubtless know, every year the broadcast networks shoot dozens of pilots in the first few months of the year in an effort to plan ahead for the Fall season.
Many of those shows go on to become future series. And a lot of those projects are cancelled just a few weeks later (remember last year’s Lone Star)
But every year there are also a handful of hotly anticipated series that DON’T make the cut. This time around I was surprised that the Don Johnson / Ellen Barker starrer, A Mann’s World, didn’t go to series – sounded like a lot of fun to me!
But another show that a lot of people thought would be picked up was Locke And Key, a mysterious new show for Fox that boasted quite a caliber. Locke was based on a popular series of comic books, starred hot young stars Nick Stahl and Jesse McCartney and was produced by Steven Spielberg. And yet Fox still PASSED on the show – and no other network, including The CW and ABC Family picked it up.
The full Locke And Key pilot was shown at Comic Con, doubtless to generate some interest in the project, but to no avail. The series remains unsold.
Well More >
Cool Clip: The Glee Cast Take on David Bowie’s Fashion
Aug 24th
Obviously Glee is not overexposed in the least at the moment… and the show’s cast clearly need all the publicity they can get!
So it’s not surprising to see the Glee kids have been named as the official spokespeople for Anna Wintour’s Fashion’s Night Out – an annual event that encourages people to shop with celebrities, drink and party.
And in true Glee fashion they’ve even gone and shot a video for the event – taking on David Bowie’s Fashion – with Lea Michele on lead vocals (of course)
Rachel, Blaine and Mike get most of the screen time, Quinn sports a new shorter cut and for some reason Sam is tagging along for the ride, even though he’s no longer part of the show and probably persona non grata with Ryan Murphy! And where the heck are Mercedes and Santana???
It’s all for a good cause and should be commended – but if you were the Glee PR team, wouldn’t you want the cast doing a bit less press at the moment?
Just a thought…
Did ABC Pull The Plug On Desperate Housewives Too Soon?
Aug 8th
Uh oh – it’s all over for the ladies of Wisteria Lane!
As you’ve no doubt read online over the last few days, ABC has decided to make the upcoming 8th season of Sunday night hit Desperate Housewives the shows last. But did they make the right decision – or jump the gun a season too soon?
As regular Remote Patrolled readers know I’m a big Desperate Housewives fan and have been from day one. By and large I think the show has maintained its quality but I must admit I did start to get restless last season and found myself fast forwarding through some of the show’s duller storylines (three words – Susan’s kidney saga). But that said I think I was still hoping for an 8th AND 9th season of the show – especially as all the cast members had signed up for two more years in a series of protracted negotiations in the spring. After all the work that went into those deals why did ABC suddenly get such itchy feet?
On the one hand maybe the network are feeling ultra confident about their upcoming Fall line-up. ABC certainly has some promising shows in the hopper which we’re steadily previewing here on the More >
