Thursday, June 09, 2011
NBC To Burn-Off Friends With Benefits; TNT Acquires Castle Reruns for 2012
From Brian Grazer, Friends With Benefits is a half-hour, single-camera comedy revolving around a group of twenty-something singles as they navigate the difficult, and often confusing, world of dating. Ben Weymouth (Ryan Hansen) is on the hunt for the perfect woman who meets his unique set of standards, while his best friend, Sara Maxwell (Danneel Harris), is just looking for a man to settle down with and raise a family. Ben and Sara have fallen into the habit of turning to each other for moral and physical support as they wait for Mr. and Ms. Right to arrive. Their friend Aaron (Fran Kranz), a romantic at heart, doesn't approve of Ben and Sara's complicated friendship, but he, along with womanizer Hoon (Ian Reed) and straight shooter Riley (Jessica Lucas), are all distracted with their own dating trials and tribulations.
In its latest high-profile acquisition, TNT has secured the exclusive off-network cable rights to the hit series, Castle, from Disney-ABC Domestic Television. Castle, which just completed its third highly rated season on ABC, is a crime drama starring Nathan Fillion (Firefly, Desperate Housewives) and Stana Katic (Quantum of Solace, TNT's The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice).
Castle (seasons 1 & 2) will begin airing on TNT in summer 2012. As part of TNT's TV Everywhere rollout, Castle will also be available for online viewing through mobile phones, tablets, computers and other devices.
TNT's deal for Castle follows on the heels of the network's recent acquisition of Hawaii Five-0, which will join the TNT lineup in 2014. TNT has also landed the popular series The Mentalist, which recently enjoyed a strong opening in its Wednesday 7-9 p.m. timeslot. It is unclear when Castle seasons 3 and beyond will air on TNT. I would assume that would start in Fall 2013.
Look for Castle to land a weekend local syndication deal soon as well and that should start in Fall 2012 or 2013 (and that would be all seasons to date rather than just the first two seasons). Stay tuned
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Wednesday, March 12
Shifting Gears - "Gummies" (ABC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Riley is horrified when she finds weed gummies in Carter’s pocket, prompting surprising advice from Matt. Meanwhile, Eve inadvertently lands Gabriel and Stitch in hot water after asking them to donate to a charity auction.
Abbott Elementary - "Karaoke" (ABC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
The teachers hit a karaoke bar for a night of fun. During the evening, Jacob bumps into an old friend.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of March 10)
Wednesday, March 12
- Denis Leary (Going Dutch/No Good Deed/Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll/The Job) - Watch Denis on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Bernadette Peters (High Desert/Mozart in the Jungle/All's Fair) - Bernadette appears on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Chet Hanks (Running Point) - Chet is a guest on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Parker Posey (Search Party/The Return of Jezebel James) - Parker appears on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Tan France (Deli Boys) - Tan is a guest on After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
- Liza Treyger (Survival of the Thickest) - Liza drops by Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 3:30am on Bravo.
- Natasha Rothwell (How to Die Alone) - Natasha talks about The White Lotus on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am. She chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
- Rebecca Wisocky (Ghosts) - Rebecca talks about Ghosts on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am and on CBS Mornings Plus in the 9am hour.
- Stanley Tucci (Central Park) - Stanley talks about The Electric Slate on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.
- John Leguizamo (The Brothers Garcia) - John gives the scoop on his film Bob Trevino Likes It on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
- Valerie Bertinelli (Hot in Cleveland/Café Americain/Sydney/One Day at a Time) - Valerie will be on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
- Carol Leifer (Alright Already) - Carol talks about her book How to Write a Funny Book on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
- Alexander Hodge (Insecure) - Alexander is a guest on PIX11 Morning News on WPIX in New York at 9:40am.
New on DVD and Blu-ray
11/05 - I Love Lucy - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
11/12 - The King of Queens - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (2024 Release)
11/19 - SpongeBob SquarePants - The Complete Fourteenth Season
11/26 - Looney Tunes Collector's Choice - Volume 4 (Blu-ray)
12/03 - Angel (1960-1961) - The Complete Series, Volume 1
12/17 - Seinfeld - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (4K UHD)
01/28 - Wait Till Your Father Gets Home - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/04 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
02/04 - The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Series
03/11 - Frasier (2023) - Season Two
04/01 - Abbott Elementary - The Complete Third Season
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