Thursday, May 02, 2019
Hulu 2019 Upfront; Suits and Spinoff to Air Back-to-Back

During the Hulu '19 Presentation at The Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden, executives took the stage to reveal the company's continued rapid growth, announce original programming and exclusive talent deals that expand Hulu's content offering, and unveil new brand initiatives, advertising products and user experience enhancements that bolster its goal of becoming the #1 choice for TV, in and out of the home. The Spirits of Vengeance are coming! In an expanded partnership, Marvel Television will bring two new live-action series to Hulu from a unique corner of the Marvel universe. The iconic adventures into fear properties, Marvel's Ghost Rider and Marvel's Helstrom are slated to debut on Hulu in 2020. Emmy® and Golden Globe Award-winning actress and producer Nicole Kidman and Emmy® Award-winning producer Bruna Papandrea will adapt the latest book by New York Times best-selling author Liane Moriarty, Nine Perfect Strangers, for Hulu via their respective production companies, Blossom Films and Made Up Stories. Emmy® Award-winner David E. Kelley and John Henry Butterworth will co-showrun and co-write the series.
The company confirmed an order for The Dropout, a limited series executive produced and starring Kate McKinnon, inspired by the ABC News podcast on the rise and fall of Elizabeth Holmes and her company, Theranos. Following the success of Hulu's 2019 new comedy slate, the platform has ordered second seasons of Pen15, Ramy and previously announced, Shrill. All three new series broke through by generating passionate fan bases and critical reception; each series currently rank in the Top 25 TV Shows of 2019 on Metacritic. And finally, in a new two-year partnership announced, tastemaker, trendsetter and recent TIME 100 Most Influential People honoree, Chrissy Teigen, will bring her trademark style to Hulu to develop Original content for the platform.
This summer, one story will come to an end as a new one begins. USA Network announced that Suits' ninth and final season, and new spinoff series, Pearson, will premiere back-to-back on Wednesday, July 17 at 9/8c and 10/9c respectively. Both dramas hail from UCP and will have 10-episode seasons. Pearson centers around the world of recently disbarred NYC powerhouse lawyer Jessica Pearson (Gina Torres) as she adjusts to down and dirty Chicago politics. Newly appointed as Chicago Mayor Bobby Novak's (Morgan Spector) right hand fixer, Jessica is quickly embroiled in a crooked and dangerous new world where every action has far-reaching consequences. With her compulsion to win, Jessica is forced to reconcile her unstoppable drive with her desire to do the right thing - two things very much at odds.
This new ensemble drama hails from UCP and is executive produced by Suits creator and executive producer Aaron Korsh alongside executive producer and showrunner Daniel Arkin. Doug Liman, David Bartis and Gene Klein of Hypnotic (Suits, Impulse), and Kevin Bray and Chris Downey, also serve as executive producers. Additional cast includes: Bethany Joy Lenz (One Tree Hill), Simon Kassianides (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.), Eli Goree (Riverdale), Isabel Arraiza (The Oath) and Chantel Riley (Wynonna Earp).
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Wednesday, July 30
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia - "The Gang Goes to a Dog Track" (FXX and FX, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Frank attempts to win big with an old business associate at a West Virginia dog track; Dennis and Dee lose more than their shirts to gambling addiction; Mac and Charlie learn about a simpler way of life.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of July 28)
Wednesday, July 30
- 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.
- Pamela Anderson (Stacked/Home Improvement) - Pamela appears on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Marc Maron (GLOW/Maron) - Marc is a guest on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC. He also talks about comedy special Marc Maron: Panicked on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
- Dave Franco (The Afterparty/Scrubs/Do Not Disturb) and Alison Brie (Community/GLOW) - Dave and Alison on Comedy Central's The Daily Show at 11pm. They also talk about Together on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am and on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
- Christine Baranski (The Big Bang Theory/Happy Family/Welcome to New York/Cybill) - Christine talks about The Gilded Age on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
- Michael Angarano (Laid/I'm Dying Up Here/Will & Grace) and Michael Cera (Life & Beth/Arrested Development/I Was a Sixth Grade Alien) - Michael and Michael talk about Sacramento with the ladies of The View on a repeat on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
- Sam Rockwell (F Is for Family) - Sam talks about The Bad Guys 2 on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.
- James Van Der Beek (Friends with Better Lives/Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23) - NBC's Today catches up with James in the 9am hour.
- Liza Koshy (Liza on Demand) - Liza talks about The Naked Gun on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
- Manny Jacinto (The Good Place) - Manny talks about Freakier Friday on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
- Valerie Bertinelli (Hot in Cleveland/Café Americain/Sydney/One Day at a Time) - Valerie opens up about her healthy lifestyle journey and prioritizing mental health on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
- Joey Lawrence (Gimme a Break!/Blossom/Brotherly Love/Run of the House/Melissa & Joey), Matthew Lawrence (Gimme a Break!/Drexell's Class/Walter & Emily/Brotherly Love/Boy Meets World) and Andy Lawrence (Tom/Brotherly Love/Oliver Beene) - The Lawrence brothers talk about their Brotherly Love Podcast Live event in Las Vegas on a repeat of Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
New on DVD and Blu-ray
01/28 - Wait Till Your Father Gets Home - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/04 - The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Series
03/11 - Frasier (2023) - Season Two
04/01 - Abbott Elementary - The Complete Third Season
05/13 - The Drew Carey Show - The Complete Series* (missing 4 episodes and some music has been replaced or altered)
06/06 - Shoresy - Season 2
06/17 - Looney Tunes - Collector's Vault - Volume 1 (Blu-ray)
07/22 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
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