NBC To Burn-Off Friends With Benefits; TNT Acquires Castle Reruns for 2012

Thursday, June 09, 2011

NBC To Burn-Off Friends With Benefits; TNT Acquires Castle Reruns for 2012

NBC has finally scheduled its comedy Friends with Benefits. But it is only a burn-off, as they didn't air it during the 2010-11 season, thus it has a 100% chance of not returning, like last summer's 100 Questions. Even more so, it will be airing Saturdays at 8:00pm & 8:30pm starting June 25 and will run though July 30. NBC has 13 episodes in the can, but as of right now 12 will air. If it remains on the schedule, that is. Anyway, there is a sitcom to watch on Saturdays this summer, even though it is a burn-off and will not return beyond these episodes.
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

Friday, August 8

Happy's Place - "Don't Sweat It" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Bobbie asks Isabella to move in with her, but when Isabella sees that Bobbie likes to address conflict head on, Isabella decides it might not be the best idea.

Happy's Place - "Dear Jack" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
When Bobbie catches Isabella doing a slow-fade breakup with her long-distance boyfriend, she convinces her to send a Dear John letter; Steve brings in a review praising Chef Emmett's cooking and acknowledging the tavern's bartender, "Abby."

Electric Bloom - "How It All Came Out in the Wash" (Disney Channel, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Jade and Posey experience opposite feelings about their first crushes. Meanwhile, Tulip discovers an exciting new talent.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of August 4)

Friday, August 8

Anthony Anderson (black-ish/Guys with Kids/All About the Andersons) - Anthony guest hosts a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Renée Rapp (The Sex Lives of College Girls) - Renée appears on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Pamela Anderson (Stacked/Home Improvement) - Pamela is a guest on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Marc Maron (GLOW/Maron) - Marc appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Gillian Jacobs (Love/Community) and Paul F. Tompkins (The Great North/BoJack Horseman/DAG) - Gillian and Paul are guests on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
Steve Buscemi (Miracle Workers) - Steve talks about Wednesday on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am and on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
Kelsey Grammer (Frasier/Partners/Hank/Back to You/Cheers) - Kelsey talks about his book Karen: A Brother Remembers on The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Katie Lowes (How We Roll) - Katie is a guest on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
The Jonas Brothers (Jonas/Jonas LA) - The Jonas Brothers perform in the Citi Concert Series on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.
Christopher Lloyd (Taxi/Stacked) - NBC's Today catches up with Christopher in the 9am hour.
Matt Rogers (No Good Deed/I Love That for You) - Matt co-hosts NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Tony Hale (Veep/Arrested Development) - Tony talks about Sketch on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Oliver Hudson (Splitting Up Together/Rules of Engagement/My Guide to Becoming a Rock Star) - Oliver is a guest on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Valerie Bertinelli (Hot in Cleveland/Café Americain/Sydney/One Day at a Time) - Valerie appears on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Jack McBrayer (30 Rock) - Jack talks about HGTV's Zillow Gone Wild on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.