News

Romy & Michele: The Musical will debut Off Broadway this fall, producers announced today.

Based on the 1997 cult film classic Romy & Michele’s High School Reunion that starred Mira Sorvino and Lisa Kudrow, the musical features a book by the film’s screenwriter Robin Schiff, music and lyrics by Gwendolyn Sanford and Brandon Jay (Orange is the New Black) and direction by Kristin Hanggi (Rock of Ages).

The production will begin previews at Stage 42 on Tuesday, October 14, with an opening night set for Tuesday, October 28.

Cast and additional creative team will be announced at a later date. Producers are Barry Kemp, Stephen Soucy, Peter Schneider and Laurence Mark with Showtown Productions serving as Executive Producer.

“Romy and Michele have been icons of friendship, fashion, and individuality from the moment we first met them,” Kemp and Soucy said in a statement. “Bringing their story to the New York stage is the perfect...

Alan Cumming has signed up for the 'Romy and Michele's High School Reunion' sequel.The 60-year-old actor is excited to be reprising his role as Sandy Frink in the follow up to the 1997 comedy, in which Lisa Judrow and Mira Sorvino played 28-year-old friends, Michele Weinberger and Romy White, who invented fake careers to impress their former classmates at a 10-year high school reunion. Asked about the sequel, Alan told People magazine: “It's very exciting. It's been really fun actually talking to Robin [Schiff], the writer and Lisa [Kudrow] as well about it.” The 'Traitors US' star confirmed the movie will be released in 2027 but didn't share any plot details.He insisted: "I can't really say much without giving too much away.“Obviously everyone's still in each other's lives. But it may be in a different way... It's nice to think of those characters still being old friends.”Alan thinks...

Nearly three decades after former high school outcasts Romy and Michele attended their 10-year high school reunion, a sequel to the 1997 movie Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion is moving forward at 20th Century Studios. The original film, which is Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, starred Mira Sorvino and Lisa Kudrow as Romy White and Michele Weinberger. The titular duo are in talks to reprise their roles in the sequel.

Oscar-winner Sorvino and Emmy-winner Kudrow will also serve as executive producers on the Romy and Michele sequel, which is set to be directed by Tim Federle (High School Musical: The Musical: The Series). Sources told The Hollywood Reporter that the movie is expected to start filming in June, likely in Los Angeles.

Sorvino posted to the social media site Threads after news broke about the sequel film, saying “We’re pretty excited about it.”

Post by @mirasorvino View on Threads...

Nearly 30 years after the release of the ’90s cult hit film “Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion,” stars Lisa Kudrow and Mira Sorvino are in talks to return for a legacyquel produced by 20th Century Studios.

Released in 1997, the film follows a pair of 29-year-olds who realize they haven’t done much with their lives since graduating high school, and decide to make up a story that they struck it rich after inventing Post-it Notes. The film was released by Touchstone Pictures, a release label established by Disney for films aimed at adult audiences.

With the acquisition of 20th Century Fox in 2019, Disney now has that studio and its specialty counterpart Searchlight Pictures to fill the role once held by Touchstone. David Greenbaum, the former head of Searchlight who is now both the president of 20th Century and Disney’s live-action division, is looking to expand the label’s output...

Romy And Michele’s High School Reunion is getting a sequel with Mira Sorvino and Lisa Kudrow in final talks to reprise their roles from the 1997 film.

The pair of actresses will also executive produce, and Tim Federle is attached to direct.

Production is eyeing a June start date, potentially in Los Angeles.

The reunion of all reunions was teased back in November 2024 when Sorvino told People that a deal had been made with a director and that she and Kudrow were on board as Eps. Then Kudrow shared in January the update that a “really good” script had been written.

Original scribe Robin Schiff returned to pen the sequel film. She has recently been behind Netflix’s hit series Emily in Paris as an executive producer and showrunner. Veteran producer Laurence Marks will also return after his work on the original film.

Mira Sorvino and Lisa Kudrow are in final talks to return for a sequel to the 1997 cult classic comedy “Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion.”

The new movie will be directed by Tim Federle, who created “High School Musical: The Musical: The Series” and wrote and directed the Disney+ original movie “Better Nate Than Never.” Returning from the original film are screenwriter Robin Schiff and producer Laurence Mark. Barry Kemp will also produce.

“Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion” follows two unsuccessful 28-year-olds who invent fake careers to impress their former classmates at their 10-year high school reunion. Schiff created the characters for her 1988 stage play “Ladies’ Room,” which starred a pre-“Friends” fame Kudrow. The actor was joined by Oscar winner Sorvino in the 1997 film, which was a moderate box office hit.

For decades since, Sorvino and Kudrow have fielded questions about a follow-up movie and, in 2022, they delighted...

The reunion is on.

A sequel to Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion is moving ahead at 20th Century Studios, with Mira Sorvino and Lisa Kudrow in negotiations to reprise their starring roles. The pair will also serve as executive producers.

Tim Federle, who wrote and directed the Disney+ original movie Better Nate Than Never and who created High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, will direct the feature, which is eyeing a June start date. Sources say the studio is looking to possibly shoot in Los Angeles, but nothing has been set.

Robin Schiff, who wrote the original and is known for showrunning the Neflix hit Emily in Paris, returned to pen the sequel. Laurence Mark, the veteran producer who produced the original, is also back in same role. Barry Kemp, the creator of 1980s series Newhart, is also producing.

The original, released in 1997, was made by Disney’s now-dormant Touchstones Pictures banner,...

First impressions are everything — except when they’re not. While most sitcoms that struggle in their first season get the ax, there have been occasions when a network is so invested in the success of a star or a concept that they give it another shot after retooling things. Sometimes they ditch a few characters or switch the location; other times they go so far as to change the name of the show. Then they put it back out into the world and hope everyone forgets about the original incarnation.

Here are seven such shows that were retooled after (or during) their first season, with notably mixed results…

7 Ellen

Ellen DeGeneres’ mid-1990s ABC sitcom was a modest success. Its first season, though, was very different from those that would follow. For starters, it was called These Friends of Mine instead of Ellen. And a couple of those friends (played...

Emily Marshall, who parlayed a gig as a secretary for producer Fred de Cordova on Johnny Carson’s The Tonight Show into a two-decade career as a sitcom writer on Newhart, Rhoda, Wkrp in Cincinnati and Designing Women, has died. She was 79.

Marshall died March 17 of lung cancer at her home in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, her friend and mentor, Emmy-nominated writer-producer Barry Kemp, said. She served as a staff writer on Newhart, which he created, from 1982-84.

Marshall was the third wife of Doc Severinsen. She married the colorful Tonight Show bandleader and trumpet player in 1980 and was with him for nearly 40 years through 2013.

Marshall also created the 1988-89 CBS sitcom Coming of Age, which starred Paul Dooley, Phyllis Newman, Alan Young, Glynis Johns, Kevin Pollak and Ruta Lee. The comedy, set in an Arizona retirement community, opened with Severinsen performing the boisterous big band number “Sing, Sing,...

"Catch Me If You Can" is one of those low-key Steven Spielberg classics that, had it been made by a lesser-known director, might've well been heralded as their masterpiece. Released in 2002, the film stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Frank William Abagnale Jr., a real-life con artist who spent his teen years masquerading as an airline pilot, a doctor, and a lawyer in the 1960s, all while forging checks to bankroll his escapades. The movie actually leaves out some of the wilder details in Abagnale's 1980 autobiographical book of the same name, like how he posed as a professor of sociology at Brigham Young University. And to think we were this close to getting a scene where DiCaprio's playboy swindler infiltrates the ranks of that primarily Mormon institution.

In truth, of course, the veracity of Abagnale's claims about teaching at Byu and his other activities has come under heavy scrutiny over the decades.

Click here to read the full article.

Audiences clearly get a kick out of Ted Lasso, the Apple TV+ series that picked up 20 Emmy nominations this year to match its 2021 mark and again lead the comedy pack. But this isn’t the first comedic series to score with viewers and voters alike by focusing on a coach who succeeds against the odds.

While Jason Sudeikis’ Lasso is an American college football coach who ventures into the world of English soccer, Craig T. Nelson starred on ABC’s Coach as Hayden Fox, a gruff leader tasked with guiding his football players at fictional Minnesota State — while eventually bonding with assistants Luther (Jerry Van Dyke) and Dauber (Bill Fagerbakke), getting to know estranged adult daughter Kelly (Clare Carey) and falling in love with TV news anchor Christine (Shelley Fabares).

Series creator Barry Kemp, who had previously written for Taxi and created Newhart,...

Exclusive: Cultivate Entertainment Partners has hired Devorah Moos Hankin as a producer, promoting Robert Szertics to VP of Management.

In her new role at Cultivate, veteran film and TV producer Hankin will continue producing, while overseeing the management and production company’s growing development slate. As a representative of Swedish descent, Szertics will continue to bridge the gap between Scandinavia and Hollywood for the company partially based in Oslo, concentrating on the crossover market for artists in television and film, while managing traditional talent.

“We are super excited to have Devorah joining our continued success building Cultivate,” said the company’s CEO, producer and co-founder Patrick Strøm. “Her broad experience and great eye for amazing stories is something we appreciate, and we look forward to developing and producing stories we care about and that will impact the audience.”

“Robert has proven himself to be an extremely focused and hard worker...

Roseanne and Will & Grace are back, but don’t expect to see a Newhart reboot. "That would be a death wish," says Bob Newhart. "My wife would kill me!" Still, the 88-year-old comedic legend recently reunited with co-stars Julia Duffy and William Sanderson for The Paley Center for Media and Hulu’s A Newhart Celebration in La. And it turns out the classic 1982–1990 sitcom was just as much fun to make as it was to watch. "I would go home at night and tell my husband not to say anything funny because my stomach muscles hurt so much from laughing all day," recalls Julia. Bob and his wife at The Paley Center for Media. (Photo Credit: Getty Images) Bob knew he had a tall order when he set out to make a follow-up to The Bob Newhart Show (1972 to 1978), which had cast him as the befuddled Dr. Bob Hartley. He...

Looks like nostalgia just isn't enough.

NBC has canceled their planned "Coach" reboot, despite an initial 13-episode order. The new show would've brought back original series creator Barry Kemp, as well as stars Craig T. Nelson and Bill Fagerbakke. There have been rumors that production was not going well due to creative issues.

The new "Coach" would've been a sequel to the original, which aired from 1989 to 1997. Nelson's character, Hayden Fox, is retired, but called back as an assistant coach to his son.

From the beginning, the revival seemed like a bad idea. At TCA a few weeks ago, one reporter asked NBC Entertainment chairman Bob Greenblatt if it was a practical joke. "One man's practical joke is another man's hit show," he said. "It's a way to do another variation on a family show with, I think, a truly talented star and a great showrunner and a presold title.

The nostalgia train just lost a car.  NBC is no longer going forward with its Coach reboot, E! News has confirmed.  The reboot would have followed Coach Fox (Craig T. Nelson, reprising his original role) as he came out of retirement to help his son coach a new football team at a school in Pennsylvania.  NBC had ordered thirteen episodes of the new series, but only produced a pilot and then decided to scrap the project entirely. According to Deadline, Nelson will still be paid for all thirteen episodes.  Coach ran on ABC from 1989 to 1997, and starred Nelson as the coach of a Big Ten football team at Minnesota State University. The series' original writer, Barry Kemp, was...

Coach has been sacked.

NBC has cancelled the followup to the ’90s comedy, starring Craig T. Nelson, our sister site Deadline reports.

RelatedCoach Revival Casts Kimmy Schmidt‘s Andrew Ridings as Hayden’s Son

The new series found Nelson’s Hayden being called out of retirement to serve as assistant coach to his and late wife Christine’s grown son, Tim, who was starting up a new team as the head coach at an Ivy League school in Pennsylvania.

Although the midseason project received a straight-to-series, 13-episode order, only a pilot was filmed. It was met with mixed results,...

NBC has pulled the plug on its revival of “Coach.” The network had given the series, a continuation of the ’90s ABC sitcom starring Craig T. Nelson, a 13-episode series order. The new “Coach” was given the greenlight in March. The series was to follow Nelson’s character from the original series, Hayden Fox, as he emerged from retirement to join his son (Andrew Ridings from “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”) on the football coaching staff of an Ivy League team. Original cast member Bill Fagerbakke was signed to revive his role as dim-witted assistant coach Dauber Dybinski. Original series creator Barry Kemp was producing.

NBC's Coach revival will not be moving forward. The network has opted to cancel the straight-to-series follow-up starring Craig T. Nelson, The Hollywood Reporter has learned. Barry Kemp — who created the original series that ran on ABC for nine seasons — was attached to write the NBC follow-up and exec produce the Universal Television multicamera series with Nelson. See more Broadcast TV's Returning Shows 2015-16 The series was poised to pick up 18 years after Coach went off the air in 1997 following a nearly 200-episode run. Nelson's beleaguered football coach has now retired and is called

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Better Off Ted alum Malcolm Barrett has landed a series regular role opposite Craig T. Nelson in Universal TV’s new Coach series for NBC. Barrett will play Waddell, president of the university. Written by the original series creator Barry Kemp, the 13-episode series is set in the present, picking up 18 years after the ABC sitcom went off the air after nine seasons. Coach Fox (Nelson) — now retired from coaching — is called back to become assistant coach to his grown son…...

Morgan Smith has landed a series regular role opposite Craig T. Nelson in Universal TV’s new Coach series for NBC. Written by the original series creator Barry Kemp, the 13-episode series is set in the present, picking up 18 years after the ABC sitcom went off the air after nine seasons. Coach Fox (Nelson) — now retired from coaching — is called back to become assistant coach to his grown son, Tim (Ridings), who is the new head coach at an Ivy League school in…...

‎Andrew Ridings, who recurs on Universal TV’s comedy series Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, has landed the young lead opposite Craig T. Nelson in the studio’s new Coach series for NBC. Written by the original series creator Barry Kemp, the 13-episode series is set in the present, picking up 18 years after the ABC sitcom went off the air after nine seasons. Coach Fox (Nelson) — now retired from coaching — is called back to become assistant coach to his grown son, Tim (Ridings)…...

Hey, Andrew Ridings, I think Craig T. Nelson has a baton he’d like to pass to you.

The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt actor set to play Tim Fox, the now-adult son of Nelson’s Hayden, in NBC’s forthcoming Coach revival, TVLine has learned exclusively.

RelatedFall TV Preview: Who’s In? Who’s Out? Your Guide to 75+ Casting Moves

Far more easygoing and empathetic than his dad, Tim is a successful high school football coach who is offered the chance to be the head coach of the Penn Institute Of Science and Technology (Pist), and carve a winning football team...

It appears Hayden Fox’s wife will be warming the big bench in the sky when Coach returns to TV next season on NBC.

Barring an 11th-hour plot tweak, viewers will learn that the character of Christine, played by Shelley Fabares during the original sitcom’s nine-year run on ABC, passed away at some point during the intervening 18 years.

PhotosFall TV Cast Changes: New, Leaving Actors for Returning Shows

The new Coach series finds Craig T. Nelson’s Hayden being called out of retirement to serve as assistant coach to his and late wife Christine’s grown son, Tim, who...

Coach Hayden Fox will have one of his right-hand men by his side when he returns to television. Coach co-star Bill Fagerbakke is set to join Craig T. Nelson as a regular on NBC’s upcoming 13-episode sequel to the 1990s sitcom. Written by the original series creator Barry Kemp, the new Coach is set in present day, picking up 18 years after the ABC sitcom went off the air after nine seasons. Coach Fox (Nelson) — now retired from coaching — is called back to become assistant…...

As it closes in on its second consecutive season-long victory in the key adult 18-49 demographic, NBC unveils a new 2015-16 primetime schedule that combines popular returning series, edge-of-your-seat new dramas, inventive new comedies and season nine of the Emmy Award-winning musical competition series The Voice. NBC is on track to win the traditional September-to-May primetime season in adults 18-49 for the second year in a row after having gone the prior 10 years without an 18-49 win. Through 32 completed weeks of the season, NBC also ranks #1 or tied for #1 among the Big 4 networks in adults and men 18-34 and men and women 18-49.

In total viewers, NBC is running #2 for the season and within 7% of its year-ago Olympics-boosted average (8.8 million vs. 9.5 million), making this season and last NBC's two top-scoring seasons in total viewers since 2006-07. NBC has won the last three November sweeps in adults 18-49, as well as...

Hollywood is obsessed with reboots as of late, and NBC is gearing up to give the beloved 1990s sitcom “Coach” a whole new run.

According to the network, Craig T. Nelson, the original Coach Hayden Fox, has signed on to reprise his role as well as serve as executive producer alongside creator Barry Kemp.

NBC hasn’t announced a premiere date just yet, and there’s no word on whether other series regulars like Bill Fagerbakke, Shelley Fabares or Clare Carey are on board. Stay linked to the GossipCenter for further details!

The Atx Television Festival has announced the currently running shows that will be attending the event in Austin, Texas from June 4th to the 7th. The main highlight of the new entries is the presence of the FX series Justified. The appearance of the creators and castmembers at the Atx Festival will mark their first public interaction since the series finale airs in a few weeks, and will also give the show’s crew one more chance to go around the victory lap. Attendees have not been announced yet, but it has been confirmed that creator Graham Yost will be present.

Yost will also be on hand to discuss the show Boomtown, which he also created, and which will be part of a panel titled “Cancelled Too Soon”. Yost will be joined by numerous individuals involved in the show, including producer Jon Avnet and castmembers Neal McDonough, Mykelti Williamson, and Jason Gedrick.

Get that letterman jacket out of storage and get ready for more old white people on TV. Following this week’s announcement that Fox will be backing a six-episode return of Chris Carter’s The X-Files, NBC has now announced that they have ordered a 13-episode renewal of Coach, the inexplicably long-running sitcom that made a star out of Craig T. Nelson. The basic plot find’s Nelson’s Hayden Fox playing second-fiddle to his son, the head coach of an Ivy League school in Pennsylvania that has never had a football team before. Barry Kemp, the creator-producer-writer of the original series, which went off the air in 1997, will return to write the new series, while also executive producing the show with Nelson. [caption id="attachment_87541" align="alignright" width="352"] Image via Pixar/caption] Little else is known about the casting or salient narrative details of the new series, other than it will be a multi-cam sitcom.

Get out the varsity jacket! Sports comedy Coach is headed back to television for a new sequel series, Variety reports. Craig T. Nelson, who starred as Coach Hayden Fox, will be reprising his role. The NBC reboot has been given a 13-episode run, but a premiere date has yet to be announced. Nelson, 70, and Coach creator Barry Kemp will serve as executive producers. The news comes just two months after Nelson's drama Parenthood tearfully ended its six-season run. (Oh Bravermans, how we miss thee!) While the show [...]...

In a completely unprecedented move, NBC has announced that they have given a straight-to-series order for a multi-camera comedy revival of the ABC 1990s sitcom "Coach".

Thirteen episodes have been ordered for the show which is Not a reboot. Rather this is a follow-up, ala "Girl Meets World," and will be set in the present day. Original star Craig T. Nelson will reprise the role of football coach Hayden Fox which he played on the original sitcom of the same name from 1989 to 1997.

EW has posted a synopsis for the new version which reads as follows: "Coach Hayden Fox, in the present day, has retired from coaching. He is called back to become assistant coach to his own grown son, who is the new head coach at an Ivy league school in Pennsylvania that is just starting up a new team."

Original series creator Barry Kemp is coming back to...

TV's Year of Revivals continues. NBC has handed out a 13-episode straight-to-series order for a Coach follow-up comedy, The Hollywood Reporter has learned. Craig T. Nelson, fresh off his six-season run on NBC's Parenthood, will reprise his role as coach Hayden Fox in the comedy. Barry Kemp — who created the original series that ran on ABC for nine seasons — will return to write the NBC follow-up and exec produce the Universal Television multicamera series with Nelson. See more Broadcast TV's Returning Shows 2015-16 NBC's sequel picks up 18 years after Coach

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Coach Hayden Fox will return to the gridiron, Vulture has learned. NBC is ordering 13 episodes of Coach, with its original lead Craig T. Nelson attached to star. The revived '90s multi-cam sitcom won't be a reboot, but a sequel, picking up 18 years after Coach left ABC. Nelson's character will ditch present-day retirement to become the assistant coach of his son's Ivy League team in Pennsylvania. The show's original creator, Barry Kemp, will write, and both he and Nelson will executive-produce. Casting and production-timeline info are under wraps, but you can get pumped up with this. Go Screaming Eagles! Or whatever this new, not-Minnesota team will be.

NBC is bringing back the hit 1990s TV series Coach, issuing a 13-episode straight-to-series order, with original star Craig T. Nelson reprising his role as football coach Hayden Fox. The new Coach series is not a reboot, but will be set in present day. The original show aired for nine seasons on ABC, from 1989 to 1997. Here's the plot description for the new series, according to Entertainment Weekly.

"Coach Hayden Fox, in the present day, has retired from coaching. He is called back to become assistant coach to his own grown son, who is the new head coach at an Ivy league school in Pennsylvania that is just starting up a new team."

Original series creator Barry Kemp is also coming back to write and executive produce this new version of Coach. No other cast members have been secured yet, so it isn't clear if other Coach stars, such as Jerry Van Dyke,...

Coach is staging a comeback.

Craig T. Nelson will reprise his old role as college football coach Hayden Fox in a new comedy for NBC this fall, People has learned.

NBC has picked up 13 episodes of the new series that will take place almost two decades after the old Coach aired on ABC.

The old sitcom from Barry Kemp aired from 1987 to 1997 and also starred Jerry Van Dyke and Shelley Fabares. In the new iteration that Kemp will also write, Hayden has retired from the gridiron action but is called back home to assist his grown son, who is coaching...

Once upon a time, TV shows died and people were sad, but they moved on.  But then peanuts earned "Jericho" another season and Deadline.com earned "Breaking In" another season and Netflix got all resurrection-y with "Arrested Development" and "The Killing" and "Longmire." Then Fox gave "24" new life as a limited series and audiences were like, "What a glorious age we live in." And Showtime got David Lynch and Mark Frost to say they were going to do more "Twin Peaks" and TV fans danced around with their favorite log. And earlier this week, Chris Carter, David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson decided the time was right to do another six episodes of "The X-Files" and we all kneels and declared, in the words of Wayne and Garth, that we were not worthy. On Thursday (March 26) afternoon, NBC announced that the magnificent Lazarus machine that is TV 2015 had given new life to.

“Coach” is getting ready to suit up again. NBC has given a straight-to-series order for a follow-up to the ABC sitcom, with Craig T. Nelson once again set to play Hayden Fox. The new offering picks up 18 years after the original series went off the air, with Nelson’s Fox in the present day and retired from coaching. However, he is called back to become assistant coach to his own grown son, who is the new head coach at an Ivy league school in Pennsylvania that is just starting up a new team. Barry Kemp, who created the original series,...

NBC is tackling a Coach revival.

The Peacock network has ordered a 13-episode sequel to the ’90s sitcom, with Craig T. Nelson reprising his title role, TVLine has learned.

Photos23 Shows We’d Remake or Revive Now!

The present-day Coach will pick up 18 years later and find Nelson’s Hayden Fox interrupting his retirement to become assistant coach to his own grown son, who is the new head coach at an Ivy League school in Pennsylvania that is just starting up a new team.

Barry Kemp, who created the original Coach (which aired on ABC from 1989-1997), will write and exec-produce the continuation.

A signature 1990s sitcom is coming back for a new chapter. NBC has given a straight-to-series 13-episode order to Coach, with original star Craig T. Nelson on board to reprise his role and creator Barry Kemp set to write.

A sequel to the original series, the new Coach will be set in present day, picking up 18 years after the ABC sitcom went off the air after nine seasons. Coach Hayden Fox (Nelson) — now retired from coaching — is called back to become assistant coach to his own grown son, who is the new head coach at an Ivy league school in Pennsylvania that is just starting up a new team. Though the original series focused on Fox’s relationship with his college-age daughter, towards the end of the show he and his wife adopted a son who will grow up to follow in his father’s footsteps. Kemp and Nelson are executive producing the comedy,...

A signature 1990s sitcom is coming back for a new chapter. NBC has given a straight-to-series 13-episode order to Coach, with original star Craig T. Nelson on board to reprise his role and creator Barry Kemp set to write. A sequel to the original series, the new Coach will be set in present day, picking up 18 years after the ABC sitcom went off the air after nine seasons. Coach Hayden Fox (Nelson) — now retired from coaching — is called back to become assistant coach to…...

Discovery Communications and Hasbro have poached Disney Channel/Disney Xd executive Nikki Reed as head of programming for their joint venture, rival children’s cable network The Hub, which is looking to expand into live-action programming. Reed, named Svp Programming & Development for The Hub, replaces Donna Ebbs, who served as the first programming chief for The Hub since its October 2010 launch. Ebbs is now transitioning to a consultant and executive producer role. “Our goal is to utilize my relationships with writers, producers and talent to grow The Hub’s existing slate of programming and enhance it with more live-action series,” said Reed, who reports to The Hub president and CEO Margaret Loesch. Hub’s current lineup is dominated by animated shows, while Reed’s background is in primarily live-action programing. For the past three years, she was VP Original Series, overseeing live-action development for Disney Channel and Disney Xd where she developed Jessie,...

BroadwayWorld has learned that movie producers Peter Schneider, Laurence Mark and Barry Kemp are working on bringing 'Romy amp Michele's High School Reunion' to the stage. Based on the 1997 film of the same name, the musical just held a New York reading, which featured the talents of Kerry Butler, Lesli Margherita, Adam Kantor, and Mara Davi. Christopher Ashley directed the reading.

When Edgar Bronfman Jr gained ownership of Universal Studios he got into some odd marketing campaign practices. One of which is this rare, employee orientation video, that enlightened people about how things were going to change under new management.

Created in 1995 by Matt Stone and Trey Parker and commissioned by comedic filmmaker David Zucker, Your Studio and You was to be played at a party Seagram threw for its employees acquired as a result of its Universal Studios take-over. It parodies the style of 1950s educational films such as Duck and Cover, while poking fun at Universal and its talent. Edgar Bronfman Jr didn’t like it, so they scrapped it but the film is notable in that it was Stone and Parker’s first Hollywood gig. The film is also notable for its use of a number of celebrity actors, musicians, writers, producers, and directors in the Universal family,...

By Josef Adalian

Disney Channel and Spike TV are doing some executive shuffling.

At Disney, former Universal current exec Nikke Reed has been named VP of original series. She'll look after live-action development for Disney Channel and Disney Xd and will report to Adam Bonnett, senior VP of originals at the cable network.

Reed had been VP of current and development at Universal Cable Productions. She previously spent five years as a development exec at Barry Kemp's Bungalow 78. On the feature side, she developed movies such as "National Treasure" and "The Kid" and executiv...

With the slate of live-action series at Disney Channel and Disney Xd growing rapidly, the channels plan to step up nonanimation efforts further with the creation of a new position, vp original series.

Former Universal Cable Prods. executive Nikki Reed has been tapped for the job and will oversee development of live-action series for Disney Channel, Disney Xd and other digital platforms.

She reports to Disney Channel senior vp original programming Adam Bonnett.

Reed most recently served as vp current and development at Ucp, where she shepherded the creation of scripted programming for non-nbc Uni cable networks.

Reed previously was vp development for director Jon Turteltaub as well as head of development at Barry Kemp's Bungalow 78 Prods.

She executive produced the 2005 feature film "Invincible," starring Mark Wahlberg.

Veteran TV lit agent Elliot Webb is departing ICM, where he served as executive vp.

After 35 years as an agent, he is leaving in August to pursue other opportunities in the entertainment industry, possibly switching to management/production.

Webb began his career at ICM in 1974. In 1983, he left ICM and joined Bob Broder and Norman Kurland to form the boutique lit agency Broder Kurland Webb.

The agency -- which eventually became Broder Webb Chervin Silbermann -- was acquired by ICM in 2006.

Webb's client list has included "The X-Files" creator Chris Carter; "Northern Exposure" co-creator Josh Brand; "The Sopranos" alums Mitchell Burgess and Robin Green;, "Law & Order" veteran Walon Green; writers Phoef Sutton, Michael Seitzman, Rob Lotterstein, Chip Johannessen and Barry Kemp; and cartoonist Garry Trudeau.

Nikki Reed has been appointed vp current and development for Universal Cable Prods.

She will be responsible for creating scripted programming for non-nbc Uni cable networks.

While the focus of Ucp, launched last year, is to develop series for NBC Uni's cable entertainment networks, it also plans to create shows for outside cable networks and media platforms.

Reed was vp of development for director Jon Turteltaub, as well as head of development for Barry Kemp's Bungalow 78 Prods. She executive produced the 2005 feature film "Invincible" starring Mark Wahlberg.

Six TV producers, four writers and four directors have been nominated for the 2005 Honors Awards presented by the Caucus for Television Producers, Writers & Directors, which made the announcement Tuesday. The producer nominees are Jerry Bruckheimer, Mark Burnett, Marcy Carsey & Tom Werner, David Milch and Gary Smith. Susan Harris, Barry Kemp, Leonard Stern and Linda Bloodworth-Thomason are the writer nominees, while directors James Burrows, Thomas Carter, Mimi Leder and Gene Reynolds also were nominated. The awards will be presented Jan. 13 at the caucus' 22nd annual Dinner & Awards Ceremony at the Beverly Hills Hotel. The black-tie event -- co-chaired by Chuck Fries and Lee Miller, with Tom Bergeron (America's Funniest Home Videos) serving as emcee -- is an annual gathering of artistic and creative professionals and executives working in the TV industry who "pay tribute to a producer, writer, director or executive for their innovative, creative and distinctive contribution to the profession." The caucus, chaired by Vin Di Bona, is a multiguild professional organization "that mentors TV producers, writers and directors in their negotiations with the cable and broadcast networks for their creative rights."...

Comedian Brett Ernst has signed a development deal with the WB Network for a comedy series project based on his stand-up act. Veteran writer-producer Barry Kemp (CBS' Newhart, ABC's Coach) and Eric Lapidus (CBS' Two and a Half Men) have come on board to pen and executive produce the project through Touchstone Television, where Kemp has an overall deal. The project marks a rare collaboration between the WB and ABC's sibling studio. Ernst, who had a talent holding deal at Touchstone last season, was featured in the New Faces showcase at the 2003 Just for Laughs comedy festival in Montreal. He is repped by UTA and manager Joan Green. Kemp and Lapidus are represented by Broder Webb Chervin and Silvermann.

Veteran comedy writer-producer Barry Kemp has inked an overall deal with Touchstone Television. Under the two-year pact, Kemp will develop series projects for the studio. Kemp, who landed his first TV writing job on ABC's comedy Taxi, went on to create and executive produce CBS' Newhart, toplined by Bob Newhart, and ABC's Craig T. Nelson starrer Coach. Last season, he co-created and executive produced with Norm Macdonald Fox's short-lived comedy A Minute With Stan Hooper, which starred Macdonald as an urbanite moving to a small Wisconsin town.