BuzzSugar

Buzz News Roundup, 4/10

BuzzSugar — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 13:30:52 PDT

Why Fox isn't airing one episode of Dollhouse. - E!
Liam Neeson will reportedly play Zeus in the upcoming remake of Clash of the Titans. - Zap2It
Showtime has passed on Ronna and Beverly, a pilot from Weeds creator Jenji Kohan. - Variety
A collection of previously unpublished short stories by Kurt Vonnegut will be released in November. - AP
YouTube and Universal are launching a new website for music videos called Vevo. - Reuters
Semi-Pro director Kent Alterman is attached to direct the grown-up adventure tale Treehouse Gang. - ComingSoon
Brittany Murphy and David Zayas have joined the cast of Sylvester Stallone's action-adventure movie The Expendables. - The Hollywood Reporter
The two-hour series finale of Prison Break will air May 15. - TV.com
Pet Shop Boys turned down a request from animal rights group PETA Europe to change the band's name to something more creature-friendly. - AFP

Photo courtesy of Fox

Not Coming to a TV Near You: L Word Spin-Off, Matthew Perry

BuzzSugar — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 12:30:36 PDT

Bad news for folks who were hoping to see The L Word's Alice in prison or Matthew Perry getting foul-mouthed: Showtime has passed on both the L Word spin-off and Perry's comedy The End of Steve.

Steve featured Perry as a bitter afternoon TV talk show host, with a script co-written by Perry and Peter Tolan. Showtime once thought the duo would be "a twisted match made in heaven," but apparently the final product didn't seem right for the network. Word is that the show is still looking for a home on other cable networks, though. Meanwhile, Showtime's pass is the end of the road for the L Word spin-off, which would have featured Leisha Hailey's Alice in prison with a new group of characters.

Two pilots are still possibilities for Showtime: Possible Side Effects, a drama about a family in the pharmaceutical industry starring Josh Lucas and Ronna and Beverly, a comedy based on YouTube sketches that Weeds creator Jenji Kohan is developing for TV.

I was excited for Matthew Perry's project, so I'm bummed that it's not making it to Showtime, but I'm still crossing my fingers for Ronna and Beverly. What about you? Are any of these shows you would want to see?

Source

Weeds Creator Starts Work on New Showtime Comedy

BuzzSugar — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 12:30:02 PST

Weeds creator and executive producer Jenji Kohan (one of my favorite names in showbiz, by the way) is filling her time between Weeds seasons developing a new comedy for Showtime. Titled Ronna and Beverly, the show is based on a series of sketches that two hilarious ladies, Jessica Chaffin and Jamie Denbo (that's them on the left), developed in comedy venues and on YouTube.

Just reading the description of the show cracks me up:

Ronna and Beverly revolves around two middle-aged women in Boston who decide to self-publish and aggressively promote a dating guide for Jewish singles, "You'll Do a Little Better Next Time."

Sure, the meddling Yenta's been done before (I'm thinking of Mike Myers's "Coffee Talk with Linda Richman" sketch on SNL) but it really never fails to make me laugh. A quick look at some Ronna and Beverly clips online reveal just how fertile this ground still is for comedy. The pilot will start shooting in February, with - yay! - Paul Feig of Freaks and Geeks directing.

Does this sound promising to you? To watch Ronna and Beverly in action,