ABC Officially Orders Katey Sagal Series, Cancels Stumptown; SNL Goes Live All October

Thursday, September 17, 2020

ABC Officially Orders Katey Sagal Series, Cancels Stumptown; SNL Goes Live All October

ABC has ordered drama series Rebel straight to series to debut in 2021 starring TV veteran Katey Sagal (The Conners, Married...with Children, Sons of Anarchy, 8 Simple Rules) in the title role. The premiere episode is written by Krista Vernoff and directed by Tara Nicole Weyr. Inspired by the life of Erin Brockovich today, Annie "Rebel" Bello is a blue-collar legal advocate without a law degree. She's a funny, messy, brilliant and fearless woman who cares desperately about the causes she fights for and the people she loves. When Rebel applies herself to a fight she believes in, she will win at almost any cost. The series stars Katey Sagal as Annie "Rebel" Bello, John Corbett as Grady Bello, James Lesure as Benji, Lex Scott Davis as Cassidy, Tamala Jones as Lona, Ariela Barer as Ziggie, Kevin Zegers as Nate, Sam Palladio as Luke and Andy Garcia as Cruz. More info to come, but look for it on ABC in 2021. In other ABC series news, they have reversed the decision for a second season of Stumptown and have canceled it due to reasons involving COVID-19. It could be shopped elsewhere, so it's possibly not totally canceled yet. It was slated to air Wednesdays at 10pm sometime this Fall on ABC but they hadn't even come close to starting production due to COVID-19. Stay tuned if it gets picked-up by another network.

Saturday Night Live

New York Times bestselling author and two-time Golden Globe Award winner Jim Carrey to take on the role of Vice President Joe Biden for the upcoming 46th season of Saturday Night Live. And we have scheduling news! SNL will start the new season with five consecutive shows - Oct. 3, 10, 17, 24, 31 at 11:30pm ET/8:30pm PT on Saturdays nights. SNL is planning to have a limited in-studio audience at Rockefeller Center for the upcoming season. The show will work closely with Gov. Cuomo's team. November and December dates have not been announced yet, however November 7 will be a repeat.

Saturday Night Live has added three featured players to its cast for the upcoming season:
· Lauren Holt is an actor, comedian, singer and improviser. She was a house performer at the Upright Citizens Brigade theater in Los Angeles and starred in the independent web series The Filth as well as the short film Parent Teacher Conference, for which she received a Best Actress nomination at the Atlanta Comedy Film Festival.
· Punkie Johnson is a comedian and writer whose recent credits include Space Force, Corporate, Adam Ruins Everything and Bill Burr Presents: The Ringers. She was a New Face at the Just for Laughs Festival in 2019 and is a proud paid regular at the world famous Comedy Store in Hollywood.
· Andrew Dismukes has served as an SNL staff writer since season 43. He is a stand-up comedian who was selected for the 2017 New Faces Showcase at the Just for Laughs Festival and has performed at other festivals, including Comedy Central's Colossal ClusterFest and the New York Comedy Festival.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Monday, November 3

The Neighborhood - "Welcome to Family Value" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Malcolm’s home renovation takes an unexpected turn when Calvin’s cousin Crutch (Tracy Morgan) shows up uninvited to fix his floors. Meanwhile, Dave’s attempts to help around the house and support Grover’s booming T-shirt business lead to more stress than he bargained for.

DMV - "Don't Kill the Job" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT)
When Colette runs into an old friend at the DMV, she pretends to be a fellow customer rather than an employee in order to save face.

St. Denis Medical - "Aloha, Everyone" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Alex tries to hold on to her peaceful vacation vibes; Joyce faces a design crisis in the birthing center; Matt and Serena reassess their working relationship.

St. Denis Medical - "Mama Bear Activated" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
After Bruce is attacked at the hospital, Matt helps him deal with the aftermath; Alex motivates Joyce to amp up security, while Ron and Serena debate who is more qualified to defend themselves.

TV We Love - "The Honeymooners" (The CW, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Jackie Gleason's creative genius; why "The Honeymooners" continues to resonate 70 years after its premiere.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of November 3)

Monday, November 3

Sean Hayes (Will & Grace/The Millers/Sean Saves the World) - Watch Sean on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Tom Hanks (Bosom Buddies) - Tom appears on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Rickey Smiley (The Rickey Smiley Show) - Rickey is a guest on Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen at 12:37am on CBS.
Isla Fisher (Wolf Like Me/Arrested Development) - Andy Cohen interviews Isla on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 9pm on Bravo.
Patti LaBelle (Out All Night) - Patti and Nona Hendryx perform on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
Rami Malek (The War at Home) - Rami talks about Nuremberg on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am and on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
Lacey Chabert (Still the King/Baby Daddy/Family Guy) - Lacey dishes on She's Making a List on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
John Slattery (Maggie/Ed) - NBC's Today catches up with John in the 9am hour.
Tig Notaro (One Mississippi) and and Valerie Bertinelli (Hot in Cleveland/One Day at a Time) - Drew is hitting the headlines with her co-pilot Ross Mathews, Valerie Bertinelli and Tig Notaro on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings. Tig talks to Drew about executive producing the documentary Come See Me in the Good Light.
Erika Alexander (Run the World/Living Single/The Cosby Show) - Erika tells Drews about her show Invasion and her podcast ReLiving Single on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.