Wednesday, December 15, 2021
Disney Reviving Zorro as New Series; Adult Swim Orders Smiling Friends
Disney Branded Television and Wilmer Valderrama are in development on a reinvention of the iconic Disney action-adventure-western series Zorro, with Valderrama executive producing and starring as Don Diego de la Vega and his dashing swashbuckling alter ego, the masked horseman named Zorro. The series in development is executive-produced by Gary Marsh, outgoing president and chief creative officer, Disney Branded Television, as part of his new multiyear production banner at Disney General Entertainment. John Gertz (The Mask of Zorro, The Legend of Zorro) of Zorro Productions, Inc., is also an executive producer.
Set in early California, the Zorro television series followed a masked avenger, the alter ego of the mild-mannered Don Diego de la Vega, as he defended the poor and acted as the scourge of military tyrants on his black stallion, Tornado. Zorro's trademark was the ragged "Z" symbol, which he slashed with his sword. A total of 78 original episodes aired from 1957-59. Four hour-long episodes were later filmed for airing on the Sunday night Disney television show, and episodes of the half-hour show were compiled into the theatrical features The Sign of Zorro and Zorro the Avenger. Valderrama's credits include the voice role of Agustin in Disney's Encanto, multiple seasons in the role of Nick Torres on NCIS and Fez on the iconic series That '70s Show, a role that garnered him numerous Alma Awards, Imagen Awards and Teen Choice Awards. Valderrama also provided the voice to the character Manny on Disney Junior's animated series Handy Manny and Gaxton in Disney's Academy Award®-nominated film Onward.
Adult Swim will be turning frowns upside down with Smiling Friends, its newest animated comedy series premiering Sunday, January 9 at Midnight ET/PT with two new episodes. Smiling Friends follows the employees of a small company dedicated to bringing happiness to a bizarre yet colorful world. The company consists of cynical Charlie and star employee Pim, each tasked with out-calls to cheer people up. There's also meticulous Allan who keeps things in order, mysterious Glep, and the unpredictable billionaire Boss who founded the company. The quarter-hour animated series is co-created by Michael Cusack (YOLO: Crystal Fantasy) and Zach Hadel (Hellbenders) and animated by Princess Bento Studio. The show's pilot first debuted on the network in 2020 and surprised viewers during its annual April Fools' Day stunt. Since then, the pilot has garnered 7 million views on YouTube and is one of the most-watched episodes on AdultSwim.com. Clearly, fans can't get enough of Pim and Charlie and their relentless journey to put a smile on their clients' faces.
Sitcoms Airing Tonight
Friday, December 9
Lopez vs. Lopez - "Lopez vs Gaslighting" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Mayan discovers Rosie has spent years secretly blaming George for parenting mistakes she made; George coaches Chance's T-ball team to always play fair… unless you're losing.
Young Rock - "Five Days" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Miami, 1997: Dwayne anxiously waits to see if his surprise heel turn will connect with the audience; as he finally gets to show off his personality in the ring, Dwayne struggles with the public attention from his growing fanbase.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of December 5)
Friday, December 9
- Don Cheadle (The Wonder Years/Black Monday/House of Lies/The Golden Palace) - Watch Don on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Zoey Deutch (The Suite Life on Deck) - Zoey appears on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Miley Cyrus (Hannah Montana) - Miley is a guest on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Sally Field (Gidget/The Flying Nun/The Girl with Something Extra) - Sally appears on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
- Bobby Cannavale (Angie Tribeca/Will & Grace) - Bobby is a guest on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Retta (Parks and Recreation) - Retta will be on The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.
- Liza Lapira (9JKL/Cooper Barrett's Guide to Surviving Life/Super Fun Night/Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23/Traffic Light) - Liza appears on The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.
- Jim Parsons (Young Sheldon/The Big Bang Theory) - Jim and Spoiler Alert co-star Ben Alridge talk about relationship red flags, how they would spend their final days and more on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
- Zoey Deutch (The Suite Life on Deck) - Zoey is joining Drew and taking part in an engagement redo on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
- Michelle Buteau (Enlisted/China, IL) - NBC's Today catches up with Michelle in the 10am hour.
- Casey Wilson (Black Monday/Marry Me/The Hotwives/Happy Endings) and Danielle Schneider (The Hotwives) - Casey and Danielle talk about the Bitch Sesh podcast on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
- Danny Trejo (Saint George) and Eduardo Franco (Gamer's Guide to Pretty Much Everything) - Danny and Eduardo talk about Hulu's It's a Wonderful Binge on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
- Vivica A. Fox (Mr. Box Office/Getting Personal/Arsenio/Out All Night) - Vivica is a guest on PIX11 Morning News on WPIX in New York at 9:37am.
New on DVD/Blu-ray (September-December)
09/06 - Young Sheldon - The Complete Fifth Season (Blu-ray) (DVD)
09/20 - Kim's Convenience - The Complete Series
09/27 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Complete Season Five / The Complete Season Six
10/04 - Mr. Mayor - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (DVD)
10/04 - The Munsters - Marineland Carnival with The Munsters TV Cast
10/18 - Abbott Elementary - The Complete First Season
11/08 - Frasier - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
11/08 - Young Rock - Season Two (Blu-ray) (DVD)
11/15 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Complete Season Seven / The Complete Season Eight
11/22 - That '70s Show - The Complete Series (Mill Creek)
11/29 - Ghosts - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
12/06 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - 70th Anniversary Ultimate Christmas Collection
12/13 - And Just Like That... - The Complete First Season
12/13 - Hogan's Heroes - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
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