TV News Roundup: Hulu Reveals ‘Little Fires Everywhere’ Premiere Date
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In today’s TV news roundup, Hulu announces a premiere date for “Little Fires Everywhere” and Variety exclusively obtains a first look at this year’s Christmas episode of “The Simpsons.”
DATES
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“Little Fires Everywhere” will debut March 18, Hulu announced. Produced by Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine, Kerry Washington’s Simpson Street, and ABC Signature Studios, the show is based on Celeste Ng’s 2017 bestselle of the same name, and follows the intertwined fates of the picture-perfect Richardson family and an enigmatic mother and daughter who upend their lives. The story explores the weight of secrets, the nature of art and identity, the ferocious pull of motherhood — and the danger in believing that following the rules can avert disaster. Witherspoon and Washington also star in the new series as Elena Richardson and Mia Warren, respectively, alongside Joshua Jackson, Rosemarie DeWitt, Jade Pettyjohn, Jordan Elsass, Gavin Lewis, Megan Stott, Lexi Underwood and Huang Lu.
FIRST LOOKS
Starz released the latest trailer for “Power” ahead of the show’s midseason premiere on Jan. 5. The last five installments in Season 6 of the drug and lust-fueled story promise to finally answer who shot the New York kingpin James St. Patrick aka “Ghost.” Omari Hardwick, Naturi Naughton, Joseph Sikora, Shane Johnson, Rotimi, Michael Rainey Jr., and Larenz Tate are all seen as the main suspects in the trailer below.
This year’s Christmas episode of “The Simpsons,” airing Dec. 15, will feature Sideshow Bob getting contracted to play Santa in the mall, which can be seen in the exclusive clip Variety obtained below. Meanwhile, someone is stealing all the Christmas packages off people’s front porches. Scott Bakula and Steve Ballmer are slated to guest star in the episode, both appearing as themselves.
DEVELOPMENTS
A multi-camera comedy entitled “Bridges” is currently in development at ABC. Per the program’s logline, “Bridges” tells the story of a family of strong Texas Latinas who have their world turned upside down when they lose the beloved mother who held their family together, and are left with the white, conservative father they blame for tearing the family apart. It is designed to be a multi-generational, multi-cultural family comedy about family, identity and forgiveness created by Aaron Serna. Serna will write and executive produce alongside Sebastian Jones, Jaime Davila and Rico Martinez.
PODCASTS
iHeartMedia and Einhorn’s Epic Prods. have teamed up to produce a new slate of iHeartRadio original podcasts for young adult listeners. The first podcast of this multi-show YA slate will be a scripted teen political thriller called “Daughters of DC,” to be released in the fall of 2020 in advance of the presidential election and distributed through the iHeartPodcast Network. Previously, the two companies partnered to develop the first-ever young adult scripted podcast “Lethal Lit: A Tig Torres Mystery,” which is currently being developed for television by producer Dana Brunetti of Cavalry Media.
EVENTS
The creators and stars of “Impractical Jokers,” the Tenderloins announced a new comedy tour named “The Scoopski Potatoes Tour.“ Produced by Outback Presents and Live Nation, the more-than 30 city tour kicks off summer 2020 in Albany, N.Y. James “Murr” Murray, Brian “Q” Quinn, Joe Gatto and Sal Vulcano have been making audiences laugh on “Impractical Jokers” since 2011, and will reach a 200 episode milestone in February 2020. The TruTV show was recently picked up for Season 9. Tickets for the tour go on sale Dec. 18.
AWARDS
Chuck Lorre has been chosen to receive the Cinematic Imagery Award at the 24th annual Art Directors Guild Awards. Recognized for his extensive career in entertainment, Lorre is credited for his work on various shows such as “The Kominsky Method,” “Big Bang Theory,” “Two and a Half Men” and many more. Other artists being acknowledged include concept artist Syd Mead and Joe Alves, who will take home the Art Directors Lifetime Achievement Award. The ceremony is scheduled to take place Feb. 1.
FESTIVALS
The Monte-Carlo Television Festival has tapped Rogers & Cowan/PMK to handle communications for the 60th annual edition, set for June 19-23. The festival showcases TV from around the world and encompasses the Golden Nymph Awards recognizing scripted and news programs. “This anniversary edition will mark a turning point and bring a whole new dimension to our event,” said Laurent Puons, CEO of Monte-Carlo Television Festival.
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