Archive for January, 2012
Coming Soon: Re-Modeled
Jan 17th
When Does It Start: Tonight, Tuesday 17th Jan at 9.00pm EST on The CW
In A Nutshell: It’s Ramsey’s Kitchen Nightmares with modeling agencies…
What’s It About: Welcome to America’s Next Top Model – the local version! Supermodel expert Paul Fisher is on a mission to transform struggling modeling agencies across America with his tough love approach. Apparently Fisher’s in it to help the small guys compete with the big agencies and to make sure the models themselves aren’t exploited. And if you believe that you’ll believe Tyra is a darling to work with! (more…)
Ratings Roundup: 15th January 2011
Jan 15th
WINNERS
ONCE UPON A TIME: Some shows crumble after a holiday hiatus – and some come back stronger than ever…
Case in point, ABC’s Once Upon A Time, which after some serious slippage towards the end of the year bounced back strong last week.
You may recall that Time launched big in October 2011 with 12.93 millions viewers but then lost viewers every single week. By mid-December the show was below the 9 million mark and ABC had to be wondering if the show was going to crater a la Pan Am.
But last week Once Upon A Time showed a serious rebound – scoring 10.35 million viewers and a strong 3.7 18-49 share. For ABC – which this week had to put the dreadful Work It out of its misery – this is definitely a happy ending. For now at least!
ROB: What do the critics know?
I had to ask myself this question Friday morning after the ratings came in for the critically slammed Rob (which I have to admit didn’t look too hot to me either!)
Despite widespread derision Rob pulled in 13.47 million viewers and a 4.1 18-49 rating – one of the strongest numbers of the week. Many commentators jumped on the ratings, proclaiming Rob More >
Ricky Gervais: Were The 2011 Golden Globes Really THAT Good?
Jan 13th
By now you doubtless know that the 2012 Golden Globes are airing this weekend – especially if you watch NBC / the Today Show.
Yep, the Peacock network has been on a PR blitz to let viewers know that the Globes are back with Ricky Gervais presiding over the proceedings. And after last year’s controversial event – who can blame them. The Golden Globes rose significantly in the ratings and you just couldn’t buy the kind of controversy and reaction that Gervais generated. Now with Ricky back for the third year in a row NBC are hoping the veteran awards show will score big in the ratings – a helpful boost for the hit starved network and also a chance to promo some of their new winter offerings (get ready for a lot of ads for Smash and The Voice).
But before we all get caught up in the hype, can I just ask a very simple question – was Ricky really THAT funny last year?
Coming Soon: Rob
Jan 11th
When Does It Start: Thursday 12th Jan at 8.30pm EST on CBS
In A Nutshell: ‿Comedian’ Rob Schneider scores his own sitcom. But can he be funny without Adam Sandler by his side?
What’s It About: Rob Schneider is Rob, a lifelong bachelor who just married into a tight knit Mexican-American family. His wife is Maggie, a beautiful and smart book translator who’s also way out of his league. Together the two elope to Vegas. But how will they break the news to Maggie’s overprotective, judgmental parents? And will Rob ever be a true part of the family? Get ready for stereotypes aplenty and endless culture clash jokes…
Coming Soon: Are You There, Chelsea?
Jan 10th
When Does It Start: Wednesday 11th Jan at 8.30pm EST on NBC.
In A Nutshell: Chelsea Handler’s life receives the sitcom treatment. Cue the laugh track!
What’s It About: Based on the bestselling book Are You There Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea, this NBC sitcom follows the life of a fictional Chelsea Handler (Laura Prepon) and her circle of friends in New Jersey. Chelsea herself pops up as her own pregnant sister, Sloane, and you can bet there’s going to be lots of Happy Endings / How I Met Your Mother style couplings and storylines. Are you laughing yet?
Ratings Roundup: 8th January 2011
Jan 8th
WINNERS
OPRAH’S NEXT CHAPTER: Finally some good news for OWN!
Yep, the beleaguered Oprah Winfrey Network might finally have another hit on their hands – and all it took was Oprah herself. Sunday night’s premiere of Oprah’s Next Chapter, featuring Winfrey interviewing Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler, gave a big boost to OWN, pulling in 1.1 million viewers to rate as the network’s biggest show in a year (OWN’s other hit? Season 25 – the series that went behind the scenes of Oprah. Hmm, do I detect a pattern here?)
Personally I thought Next Chapter was very entertaining and proved once again why Oprah is such a strong interviewer – she certainly didn’t duck the tough questions. But I do think 2 hours is too long for the show – even I had to reach for the fast forward button by the halfway mark!
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 >
Coming Soon: The Firm
Jan 4th
When Does It Start: Sunday 8th Jan at 9.00pm EST on NBC (the show’s regular slot will be Thursdays at 10pm)
In A Nutshell: The Tom Cruise film from 1993 gets reworked as a TV series. Who says there are no new ideas left in Hollywood!
What’s It About: 10 years on from the events of The Firm, Mitch McDeere (Josh Lucas), his wife Abby (Molly Parker) and daughter Claire are emerging from witness protection. You may recall that the McDeeres had become caught up with a corrupt law firm with ties to the mob – before the couple battled back and brought down the firm.
Now a decade on, the McDeere’s are trying to start a new life, Mitch has launched his own upstart law firm, but the company is strapped for cash. So when another large law firm offers to take on the fledgling company the McDeeres decide to partner up. Guess what happens… yep, lightning really does strike twice! (more…)
Is The Sun About To Set On Jersey Shore?
Jan 3rd
Thursday night sees the return of Jersey Shore to MTV – as Season 5 of the guido and guidettes docu-series kicks off. But am I the only person detecting a distinct lack of buzz for the former smash series this time around?
My instinct is that this season will be the year that Jersey Shore finally comes back down to earth after notching up some stellar ratings over the last couple of years.
Let’s be honest – the whole premise of Jersey Shore is kind of a yawn now. The cast look bored and are all more concerned with their outside ventures and future ‿careers’ than ‿performing’ circus style for the MTV cameras. And MTV has rattled out so many series so quickly that there’s not been time for viewers to catch their breath and miss the show. Season 4 only just finished in October and now, just two months later, season 5 arrives. Talk about overkill.
