New Charlie Sheen Sitcom Coming Soon; Friday Night Lights Comes To ESPN Classic On Thursday Nights

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

New Charlie Sheen Sitcom Coming Soon; Friday Night Lights Comes To ESPN Classic On Thursday Nights

Former Two and a Half Men star Charlie Sheen is planning his return to series television in Anger Management, a new sitcom loosely based on Revolution Studios' 2003 hit comedy feature of the same name. Lionsgate-owned Debmar-Mercury, headed by Co-Presidents Mort Marcus and Ira Bernstein, will distribute the series that will be produced by Lionsgate Television.
Sheen will retain a significant ownership stake in the series inspired by the film, in which a mild-mannered, non-confrontational man is ordered to attend group anger management sessions led by a therapist who could probably use some anger management himself.
"I chose Anger Management because, while it might be a big stretch for me to play a guy with serious anger management issues, I think it is a great concept," Sheen said. "It also provides me with real ownership in the series, a certain amount of creative control and the chance to be back in business with one of my favorite movie producers of all time, Joe Roth."
Roth and Sheen have worked together on five features, including Major League, Young Guns and Three Musketeers. Roth is also currently working with Lionsgate's Debmar-Mercury and Ice Cube's Cube Vision on the TBS hit Are We There Yet? It is one of three hugely successful sitcoms (along with Tyler Perry's House of Payne and Meet The Browns) that are the result of a unique sitcom business model created by Marcus and Bernstein. All three sitcoms air on TBS, but as of now, Anger Management does not have a network home. As soon as we find out, we will let you know, but as with other Lionsgate series, it will be given a 10-episode order and if they like it, they will produce a whole bunch more very quickly (likely 90 more episodes).

Fans of Friday Night Lights will once again be able to recapture the excitement of the Dillon Panthers as ESPN will air the entire series. The series started on ESPN last Tuesday (July 12, 2011) as they celebrated the kick-off of the football-themed drama with episodes one and two from season one and aired it back-to-back in primetime on ESPN at 8pm and 9pm ET.
And then for those who are new to the series, a crash course in Friday Night Lights was offered via a "Season 1 FNL Marathon" on ESPN Classic last Thursday and Friday (July 14 and 15).
Now, beginning Thursday, July 21, ESPN Classic will become the new cable home for Friday Night Lights, airing each season in sequential order beginning with season one/episode one, with "new" episodes each Thursday night at 9pm and 10pm ET. Longhorn Network, the ESPN owned and operated 24-hour network dedicated to Texas athletics in partnership with UT and IMG College, will also air the entire five seasons of Friday Night Lights upon its August launch.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Monday, April 20

The Neighorhood - "Welcome to Purse Dog" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Calvin reluctantly agrees to dog-sit a glamorous little companion, only to face an awkward twist when someone else lays claim to it. Meanwhile, a joint celebration prompts Malcolm to question whether he and Mercedes are moving too fast. Amber Stevens West guest stars as Mercedes, Malcolm's Girlfriend.

DMV - "Drive-ory Tower" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Colette tries to bridge a growing divide at the office by bringing the driving examiners and counter clerks together. Meanwhile, Vic stubbornly avoids seeing a doctor after an unusual injury, forcing Barb to get creative to help him.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of April 20)

Monday, April 20

Kal Penn (The Santa Clauses/Sunnyside/We Are Men) - Watch Kal on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Quinta Brunson (Abbott Elementary) - Quinta appears on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC. She also talks about Abbott Elementary on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
Don Cheadle (The Wonder Years/Black Monday/House of Lies/The Golden Palace) - Don is a guest on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Henry Winkler (Barry/Arrested Development/Out of Practice/Monty/Happy Days) - Henry stops by Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC. He also talks about Hazardous History with Henry Winkler on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
Lea Michele (The Mayor) - Lea appears on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Aaron Tveit (Schmigadoon!) - Aaron is a guest on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
B.J. Novak (The Office) and Jim Parsons (Young Sheldon/The Big Bang Theory) - Andy Cohen interviews B.J. and Jim on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 9pm on Bravo.
William Stanford Harris (Abbott Elementary) - William talks about Abbott Elementary on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
Ramy Youssef (#1 Happy Family USA/Ramy/See Dad Run) - Ramy chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Laurie Metcalf (Big Mistakes/The Conners/Roseanne/The McCarthys/The Norm Show) - Laurie talks about Big Mistakes on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
Jane Fonda (Grace and Frankie) - NBC's Today catches up with Jane in the 9am hour.
Christopher Briney (Hacks) - Christopher talks about Hacks on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Blair Underwood (Fatherhood/The New Adventures of Old Christine) - Blair tells Sherri about his new memoir A Soldier's Wife: My Mother, the Marvelous Mrs. Marilyn A. Underwood on Sherri, so check your local listings.
Phoebe Dynevor (Younger) - Phoebe is telling Drew about her new movie Thrash on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Dan Bucatinsky (The Comeback/Marry Me/Web Therapy) - Dan appears on New York Living on WPIX in New York at 10:05am.