TV Bits: Dwight Schrute-Centered ‘Office’ Spinoff In The Works, Plus: ‘Indie Game’, Paul Feig, Alan Ball, Rebel Wilson
With the exception ofTrue Bloodcreator Alan Ball’s very serious-soundingBanshee, today’s TV Bits is all about the funny. After the jump:
If the new series makes it to the small screen, and if (as expected)The Officeis renewed for a ninth season, Wilson will return for several episodes this fall before transitioning to the new show in midseason. According to a source who spoke withDeadline, at its heart the new show will be “about a family farm struggling to survive and a family trying to stay together.”
The Schrute-centric comedy will be the second time NBC’s tried to branch out withThe Office;Parks & Recreationwas originaly conceived of as anOfficespinoff before it evolved into a totally unrelated show created byOfficevetsGreg DanielsandMichael Schur. Wilson andOfficeshowrunnerPaul Lieberstein(who also plays HR director Toby) will executive produce the new series, alongsideOfficeexec producersBen SilvermanandHoward Klein. [Deadline]
Speaking of people who’ve worked onThe Office:Paul Feighas come aboard to direct and executive produce the pilot episode ofThe Viagra Diaries, fromSex and the CitycreatorDarren Star. Based on the book byBarbara Rose Brooker, the series starsGoldie Hawnas a 60something woman dealing with the single life for the first time in 35 years after her husband leaves her.
Feig’s extensive television experience includes creating NBC’s short-lived but critically adoredFreaks & Geeks, and helming episodes ofArrested Development,Bored to Death,Nurse Jackieand the aforementionedThe Office. His success with last year’sBridesmaidshas made him a sought-after feature director as well, and he recentlysigned onto directThe Better WomanbyGilmore Girlscreator Amy Sherman-Palladino. [Variety]
And speaking of people who’ve worked onBridesmaids:Rebel Wilsoncould soon be joiningBridesmaidsco-star Melissa McCarthy on CBS. The network has ordered a pilot for a half-hour multi-camera comedy calledSuper Fun Night, which Wilson wrote and will star in.Conan O’Brienis also on board as an executive producer. The series centers around three nerdy gal pals on a “‘funcomfortable’ quest to have super fun every Friday night.”
Sounds pretty great so far, though I’ll be curious to see who gets cast as Wilson’s buddies. And as portmanteaus go, “funcomfortable” definitely beats out the grating and unnecessary “adorkable.” [TV LineviaBadass Digest]
True BloodandSix Feet UndercreatorAlan Ballhas had great luck with HBO, but for his next endeavor he’ll be teaming up with HBO’s somewhat less reputable sister network Cinemax. As part of its move toward more original programming, Cinemax has given a ten-episode order to Ball’sBanshee, an action drama described as “Walking TallmeetsHistory of Violence.” Set in Pennsylvania’s Amish country, the series centers around an ex-con who poses as the sheriff of a small town called Banshee in an effort to hide from the gangsters he’s crossed.
Emmy winnerGreg Yaitanes(House) is set to direct the first episode, and will also serve as an exec producer along with Ball, writersJonathan TropperandDavid Schickler, andPeter Macdissi. Ball is expected to divide his time between the new show andTrue Blood.Bansheeaims to begin shooting this spring in North Carolina for a 2013 premiere. [Reuters,Deadline]
One of this year’s most intriguing Sundance projects could soon be coming to a screen near you, after a fashion. HBO andScott Rudinhave picked up the remake rights the feature docIndie Game: The Movie, with the intention of adapting it into a (fictional) half-hour comedy series.
Directed byJames SwirskyandLisanne Pajotand funded, in a large part, through Kickstarter, the originalIndie Gamefollows the ups and downs of independent game developers preparing to release new titles. I thoughtthe trailerfor the film looked more bittersweet than funny, but I’d be interested to see a show set in such a unique world.
Indie Gameis one of several projects Rudin currently has set up at HBO. The others include Ben Stiller and Jonathan Safran Foer’sAll Talk, Aaron Sorkin’sNewsroom, and the Noah Baumbach-directed Jonathan Franzen adaptationThe Corrections. [THR]
