Kristen Bell and Rob Thomas, Together Again?

BuzzSugar — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 11:33:19 -0700

If Rob Thomas is the busiest man in television, then his former Veronica Mars star, Kristen Bell, may be about to be the busiest woman. E! is reporting that Bell is in talks to join one of Thomas' three shows this fall. And here's a hint: It's not 90210 .

Instead, the gossip is that Bell will be offered the role of one of the daughters in Outrageous Fortune, Thomas' remake of a New Zealand series about a family of criminals trying to give up their scheming ways. Rene Russo is reportedly in talks to play the mother, who is inspired to start a legit life when her husband is jailed. In the New Zealand version of the show, the family has two daughters: Pascalle, a wannabe model who spends a lot of time lazing around and waiting to be discovered, and Loretta, a vaguely goth-y teen who spends a lot of time hanging out at the local video store without actually working there. Does either sound like a role for Bell?

I like the idea of seeing the former crime-solver hanging around with a family of criminals, but really, how on earth is Bell going to do it? She's the voice of Gossip Girl, and she's probably also coming back to Heroes, at least for a little while. But hey, if Thomas can have three shows, why not K-Bell?

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Rob Thomas = The New Josh Schwartz?

BuzzSugar — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 11:32:06 -0700

OK, so it's not like Josh Schwartz needs to be replaced - with Gossip Girl and Chuck both coming back for second seasons, the OC ingenue is doing just fine, thanks. But Rob Thomas, creator of the late, great Veronica Mars, seems like he's about to give Schwartz a run for his money for the title of busiest man in TV.

We were impressed when Schwartz got two pilots last season; Thomas now has three: a remake of his own 1998 show, Cupid for ABC; a Beverly Hills, 90210 spinoff for the CW; and, most recently, a remake of New Zealand's Outrageous Fortune, also for ABC. Whew.

It's not just the sheer volume of work that makes me think Thomas is the Schwartz of this year's pilot season. They've got some other things in common, too:

They both discover unheralded young talent. Schwartz gets to claim Mischa Barton, Rachel Bilson, Adam Brody, and a big chunk of the cast of Gossip Girl. But Thomas has a big-time rising star in his own back pocket: Kristen Bell. Does one sassy teen detective trump a whole quiver of rich kids?
They both write great teen heroines. Thomas' Veronica Mars experience is what gives me hope for the 90210 project, while Schwartz takes the Dawson's Creek-style "nobody talks like that, but man, I wish they did" dialogue to a whole new level.
They both respond well to adversity. Just months after Schwartz's first show was canceled, he was back with two pilots - both of which have gone on to become buzzed-about series. Thomas spent his year post-Veronica Mars bouncing around various ABC shows (Big Shots, Miss/Guided), but now he's found his footing by reworking three older series - including one of his own that he wants to do better.

Not to mention, if networks keep pushing so hard for reality programming, pretty soon a huge percentage of our comedies and dramas will be written by these two guys. To see a short promo for the show Thomas most recently signed on to remake, about a criminal family that tries to go legit, just read more.

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