New Charlie Sheen Sitcom Coming To FX in Summer 2012; Chelsea Kane Joins ABC Family Sitcom Pilot

Monday, October 31, 2011

New Charlie Sheen Sitcom Coming To FX in Summer 2012; Chelsea Kane Joins ABC Family Sitcom Pilot

Happy Halloween! This could be scary for some, but former Two and a Half Men star Charlie Sheen will return to television, as we know... but now we have the full details! Starting in summer 2012, FX has acquired the new Sheen sitcom Anger Management, a new sitcom loosely based on Revolution Studios' 2003 hit comedy feature film of the same name. FX has ordered 10 episodes of Anger Management from Lionsgate-owned distributor Debmar-Mercury, led by Co-Presidents Mort Marcus and Ira Bernstein. Production on the sitcom will begin in early 2012 with comedy veteran writer-producer Bruce Helford (George Lopez, The Drew Carey Show) as executive producer and showrunner. It will be produced by Lionsgate Television, led by Television Group President Kevin Beggs and COO Sandra Stern; Joe Roth and Revolution Studios' Vince Totino; Sheen manager Mark Burg's production company, Evolution Management; and Ramon Estevez and Estevez Sheen Productions.

In success, FX will pick up an additional 90 episodes under a unique syndication model crafted by Debmar-Mercury for multiple Tyler Perry sitcoms and Revolution's and Ice Cube's Are We There Yet? The series will air exclusively on FX until the off-network episodes start airing in broadcast syndication in fall 2014 -- only two years after its debut, since it will have 100 episodes by then. Sheen will retain a significant ownership stake in the series inspired by the film, in which an anger management therapist, who may need more counseling than his patients, wreaks havoc on the lives of his patients through his unconventional methods.
FX already airs repeats of his former sitcom Two and a Half Men everyday and they do great ratings. We will have more on this for sure as we get closer to summer 2012, such as a premiere date and what day/time it will air. So come on back!

ABC Family has cast rising star Chelsea Kane (Dancing with the Stars Season 12) on a new sitcom pilot. She is probably best known for being a finalist on ABC's Dancing with the Stars and who stars in Disney Channel's Jonas as Stella and in the upcoming ABC Family movie musical, Elixir (working title), has been cast as Penny in the new half-hour comedy pilot, Baby Daddy. Kane joins previously announced cast including Derek Theler and Cameron Deane Stewart. This sitcom pilot, a half-hour comedy from executive producer Dan Berendsen, is about Ben (Stewart) who, in his 20s, becomes a surprise dad to a baby girl when she's left on his doorstep by an ex-girlfriend. Ben decides to raise the baby with the help of his mother, his brother, Danny (Theler), his best buddy and his close female friend, Penny (Kane), who is harboring a secret crush on him. Baby Daddy is a multi-camera comedy and is scheduled to shoot in front of a live audience in December in Los Angeles.

If the series is picked-up to series, it could be a possible companion to ABC Family's popular original sitcom Melissa & Joey. ABC Family has not found a good pairing with that sitcom yet, as State of Georgia (starring Raven Symone) was recently canceled by ABC Family due to low ratings, which is a bummer since it was decent. ABC Family also has another sitcom pilot that is in contention titled Village People, a multi-camera half-hour pilot centering on a single, high-powered career woman who adopts a baby from a teen mother -- whom she ends up caring for as well. We hope both make it to series but are hoping more for Baby Daddy so we can see Chelsea Kane blossom into a big star. Stay with us for further updates!

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Wednesday, October 30

Abbott Elementary - "Costume Contest" (ABC, 9:30PM ET/PT)
It’s Halloween at Abbott Elementary! Janine and Gregory proudly show off their couple’s costume, but it fails to translate. Meanwhile, Barbara faces pushback from parents concerned about hygiene and her beloved apple-bobbing tradition.

Wizards Beyond Waverly Place - "Saved by the Spell" (Disney Channel, 8:00PM ET/PT)
On her first day of school, Billie uses magic to impress Roman's best friend; when a jealous Roman steals Billie's wand, he falls into the grasp of a wizard-hunting phantomus.

Wizards Beyond Waverly Place - "Something Wizard This Way Comes" (Disney Channel, 8:30PM ET/PT)
On Halloween, Billie tells Roman about Pumpkin Belly, a ghoul who eats anyone whose house isn't spookily decorated; Justin, Milo and Giada defend the home from pranksters.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of October 28)

Wednesday, October 30

Sheryl Lee Ralph (Abbott Elementary/Fam/Instant Mom/Moesha/It's a Living) - Watch Sheryl on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Salma Hayek Pinault (The Sinbad Show) - Salma appears on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Kieran Culkin (Solar Opposites/Go Fish) - Kieran is a guest on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Tom Hanks (Bosom Buddies) - Tom stops by Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Emily Osment (Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage/Young Sheldon/Young & Hungry/Hannah Montana), Tien Tran (How I Met Your Father) and Vinny Thomas (Platonic) - Emily, Tien and Vinny are guests on After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
Ronny Chieng (Young Rock/Ronny Chieng: International Student) - Ronny hosts Comedy Central's The Daily Show at 11pm.
Adam Pally (Mr. Throwback/Indebted/Making History/The Mindy Project/Happy Endings) - Adam appears on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 3:30am on Bravo.
Keri Russell (Running Wilde/Daddy's Girls) - Keri talks about The Diplomat on ABC's Good Morning America some time between 7-9am and on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
Matty Matheson (The Bear) - Matty talks about improvising scenes on the hit show The Bear and how he started his career in restaurants on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Anna Kendrick (Love Life) - Anna is chatting with Drew about directing her first film Woman of the Hour, the crazy serial killer case the movie is based on, finding boundaries in her life, turning 40 and more on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Mayan Lopez (Lopez vs Lopez) - Mayan discusses her sitcom Lopez vs Lopez on The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.
Blair Underwood (Fatherhood/The New Adventures of Old Christine) - Blair is a guest on PIX11 Morning News on WPIX in New York at 9:30am.
Marissa Jaret Winokur (What We Do in the Shadows/Retired at 35/Stacked) - Marissa appears on New York Living on WPIX in New York at 10:05am.
Melissa Peterman (Happy's Place/Young Sheldon/Baby Daddy/Working Class/Reba) - Melissa talks about NBC's Happy's Place on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.