TV Bits: ‘Girls’, ‘Downton Abbey’, ‘How I Met Your Mother’, ‘Happy Endings’, ‘Don’t Trust The B–’, ‘Archer’, ‘The Walking Dead’, ‘Mockingbird Lane’, ‘The Office’
While we’ve been running around preparing for and celebrating the holidays, a few interesting bits of TV news have broken over the past few days. After the jump:
ABC’s already declined to order more666 Park Avenue, and now it’s pulling the supernatural drama off its Sunday 10 PM slot altogether. Instead, the network will air new episodes ofHappy EndingsandDon’t Trust the B—startingJanuary 6. Both comedies will continue to show new episodes on Tuesdays as well during that time period.
I’m not one to complain about getting twice the usual dose ofHappy Endingsin a given week, and I’ll be glad if the move helps these comedies boost their viewership; on the other hand, schedule-shuffling generally isn’t a sign of confidence. Meanwhile, the plan for666 Park Avenueis to air the remaining episodes over the summer. [Deadline]
Isis will be getting a little visit from Raylan Givens in the next season ofArcher— or at least, the actor who plays him.Timothy Olyphanthas signed on for a guest role on the hit comedy as a secret agent pal of Sterling’s who is accused of double-crossing his colleagues. The episode will airJanuary 24. [Screen Crush]
The official reason forGlen Mazzara’s departure fromThe Walking Deadmay be vague “creative differences,” but it seems the real explanation could come down to money. One writer speculates that Mazzara may have wanted a raise that the stdio wasn’t willing to give him.
AMC hasn’t confirmed that guess, of course, but it fits with what we’ve previously seen of their tightfistedness. Certainly fellow showrunnersKurt Sutter(Sons of Anarchy) andShawn Ryan(The Shield) areeager to blamethe network. Head toVultureto read more.
Archery has taken off in a big way in 2012, with heroes likeThe Hunger Games' Katniss,Brave’s Merida,The Avengers' Hawkeye, andArrow’s Oliver Queen. And that trend will continue into 2013, if The CW has anything to do with it. The network behindArrowis developingSherwood, an hourlong drama about another bow-and-arrow-wielding do-gooder.
Tze Chunis writing the script, which is set in eleventh-century England. At its center is a young noblewoman who takes up with Robin Hood and his Merry Men to help the oppressed. That includes her serf boyfriend, who’s been wrongfully locked up by Norman occupiers. [THR]
NBC slammed the brakes on the proposed Schrute-centricOfficespinoffThe Farma couple of months ago, but we will get to see the failed pilot eventually.Greg Danielshas confirmed that the show will air in 2013 as an episode ofThe Office.
“We’re not going to air exactly what it was, because it has certain aspects that were appropriate for a pilot of a new show,” he said. “We’re going to shoot a little additional material to make it fit into the season more.“The Officeends its nine-season run this spring. [TV Line]
The writing was on the wall when NBC chose to airBryan Fuller’sMockingbird Lanepilot as a Halloween special rather than as the first episode of a new series. A few fans held out hope that solid ratings could convince the network to change their minds, but now NBC has officially passed.
“I tweet with a heavy heart,” Fullerwrote. “NBC not moving forward with #MockingbirdLane. From producers and cast, thank you all for enthusiasm and support.” [Deadline]
January seems like such an appropriate time to debut a new episode ofGirls, seeing as the HBO comedy is all about young people resolving (and often failing) to better themselves. Two new trailers offer a peek at the fresh challenges Hannah (Lena Dunham) and her pals will face when Season 2 kicks offJanuary 13.
But don’t think the girls are the only ones dealing with new problems next year. In a new featurette,Alex Karpovsky,Adam Driver,Christopher Abbott, andAndrew Rannellsdiscuss where the guys ofGirlsare headed.
[viaThePlaylist]
Finally, because I like to save the most spoiler-y items for last, here’s a major bit of news fromDownton Abbey. (Stop reading now if you don’t know / don’t want to know what happens in the upcoming third season.)
We heard a rumor a while back thatDan Stevenscould sit out the show’s upcoming fourth season. Sadly, that talk has now been confirmed. Mourn for the departure of Matthew Crawley if you like, but there’s no need to cry for Stevens — he’s got plenty of other stuff to keep him busy, including his run on Broadway’sThe Heiressand a role in Bill Condon’s upcoming WikiLeaks film. [Deadline]
