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Overall and first-look deals still drive the television business.

Although some mega-producers have moved to the streaming world, including Ryan Murphy and Shonda Rhimes at Netflix, the overwhelming majority of pacts are still at the studio and linear network level. These deals help lock in show services, as well as keep the development pipeline flowing.

Here is a snapshot at most of the deals currently in place across Hollywood, as of mid-May.

A+E Studios

Appletree Pictures

Ross Fineman

Sarah Gertrude Shapiro

Thruline (Ron West/Chris Henze/Jb Roberts)

ABC Studios

Eli Attie

Alec Baldwin/Mallory Schwartz El Dorado Pictures

Kenya Barris Khalabo Ink Society

Julie Bean

Kevin Biegel

Sherry Bilsing-Graham/Ellen Kreamer

Bluegrass Fanfare

Chris Brancato Churchill Road Prods.

Jeremy Bronson

Danny Chun

Adam Ciralsky

Eliza Coupe

Liz Craft/Sarah Fain

Carlton Cuse

Paul Davies

Viola Davis/Kaylon Hunt JuVee Prods.

Tim Doyle

Dan Dworkin/Jay Beattie

Randall Einhorn...

Dmitry Lipkin and Colette Burson spent countless hours working side by side, painstakingly writing and developing HBO's hit TV show "Hung" ... so, naturally they're getting a divorce.  The couple co-created the show starring Thomas Jane ... about a well endowed high school basketball coach who becomes a male prostitute.  According to the docs, Dmitry filed ... citing irreconcilable differences ... after 8 years of marriage. He's requesting joint custody of their two kids -- a girl and boy, ages...

Hung co-creator/ executive producer Colette Burson has teamed with the series’ co-star Anne Heche for another half-hour single-camera project, this time at NBC. The two will co-write the comedy, which may serve as a potential starring vehicle for Heche. It centers on Beauty Department Sales Manager Poppy Blake, 43, who questions everything about love and relationships. With the help of her hilariously opinionated sister Chelsea, her romantically deprived co-workers, and a vast array of department store clients, Poppy turns a comic yet anthropological eye on what love and sex really mean for women. The project stems from Heche’s first-look deal with Universal Television, which will produce the comedy. Burson and Heche executive produce. This marks the first half-hour network sale for Burson who, along with her husband — Hung co-creator Dmitry Lipkin — have a cable overall deal at Fox 21. She is with UTA and Gang Tyre. Heche, repped by UTA,...

Fox 21 has hired Television 360 co-head Brandon Brito as vice president of scripted. In his new gig, Brito will be charged with working with writers on the studio’s roster –including Craig Wright, Stephen Gaghan and Hung’s Dmitry Lipkin and Collette Burson -- to develop new comedy and drama projects for all cable networks, as well as identifying new talent and ideas for series. He will also assist in oversight of the company’s current series, including six-time Emmy winner Homeland and ratings behemoth Sons of Anarchy. Photos: The 100 Fresh Faces of Fall TV “We've been looking for the right person for

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Chicago – HBO finally broke through with their first major new comedy successes since “Entourage” this year with the amazing “Girls” and “Veep.” There were a few growing pains between the critical darlings however, a trio of shows that never quite took off like their breakthrough network hoped they would. And yet there are things to like about at least two of them and they probably have some loyal audiences who want to own them on Blu-ray. Now they can.

Bored to Death: The Complete Third Season was released on Blu-ray and DVD on September 4, 2012

Photo credit: HBO

“Bored to Death: The Complete Third Season”

Rating: 3.0/5.0

The third and final season of Jonathan Ames’ hipster comedy is typically inconsistent for a show that never quite found the right rhythm. Having said that, there were always elements of “Bored to Death” that worked, most notably a spectacular cast led by Jason Schwartzman,...

You on your way out, dawg?

Following Steven Tyler’s rambling letter of resignation from American Idol Thursday and Jennifer Lopez’s 99-percent confirmation that she’s leaving, too, there is talk that Randy Jackson may not be long for the judges’ podium, either.

Rather than depart the singing competition completely, though, Jackson is rumored to be taking a mentoring role at the show, Us Weekly reports. His possible replacement? Pop sensation Mariah Carey, who is allegedly is “in serious talks” with the show. Other floated names include former contestant/pop singer Adam Lambert and The Black Eyed Peas frontwoman Fergie.

Showtime is developing a new show from the co-creators of HBO’s Hung entitled Sleep No More, Deadline reports.

Dmitry Lipkin and Colette Burson, who also wrote The Riches, will write and executive produce the supernatural thriller, in which the dead keep returning to life in a small town. It’s very early, so that’s all we got, but hey, it’s got dead people in it, which is always a plus.

Showtime is in desperate need of another 'cash cow' now that Dexter is winding down. As such they're developing a new supernatural series that has a very impressive pedigree behind it.

This new series, titled Sleep No More is being developed with Hung co-creators Dmitry Lipkin and Colette Burson. The show is set in a mysterious small town where the dead are returning to life. Not much else is known about it at this time, but the premise can't help but remind of of Dead & Buried, and that alone is enough to make me curious.

Lipkin and Burson will do double duty as writers and executive producers. We're still in the early stages of this one, but don't fret. We'll keep you appraised of all things Sleep No More as we hear it. In the meantime, take two minutes and savor this excellent trailer for Dan O' Bannon's 80s classic Dead & Buried.

Showtime is developing a supernatural thriller series titled Sleep No More, which Deadline says revolves around "a town where the dead keep returning to life." While that's kind of a placeholder title for something spooky, we're hoping it's based on the incredible, interactive NYC theater experience. (Like, really hoping. Desperately.) Hung co-creators Dmitry Lipkin and Colette Burson (pictured) are running the show.

Exclusive: Showtime is developing a new series from Hung co-creators Dmitry Lipkin and Colette Burson. Called Sleep No More, the Fox 21-produced supernatural thriller tells the tale of a town where the dead keep returning to life. Lipkin and Burson were the creators of The Riches and co-creators of HBO’s now cancelled moonlighting male prostitute series Hung. The husband-and-wife team will serve as executive producers and writers. This is the first project from the duo in their recent two-year deal with Fox’s cable and reality TV division. Fox 21 produces FX’s Sons Of Anarchy and Showtime’s Homeland and recently announced a two-year pod deal with Oscar-winning screenwriter Stephen Gaghan. Lipkin is repped by CAA. Burson is repped by UTA.

Blu-ray & DVD Release Date: Sept. 4, 2012

Price: DVD $39.99, Blu-ray $49.99

Studio: HBO/Warner

Thomas Jane is the exceptionally endowed Ray Drecker in Hung.

Ray Drecker (Thomas Jane, Give ‘Em Hell Malone) — the well-endowed former high school sports legend turned middle-age high school basketball coach turned local gigolo — returns for his third and final go-round in HBO’s comedy TV series Hung: Season 3.

HBO officially cancelled the television show in December, 2011 and will not renew it for a fourth season.

In the face of a (still) recession-plagued economy, Ray and his unlikely pimp Tanya (Jane Adams, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) take matters into their own by hands by opening the “Happiness Consultants Wellness Center for Women.” The center is a very public front for their gigolo enterprise complete with “orgasmic living” seminars and “private consultations.” However, just as the business begins to make money, their former partner Lenore (Rebecca Creskoff,...

Hung co-creators, the husband-and-wife writing team of Dmitry Lipkin and Colette Burson, have signed a two-year overall deal with Fox 21, 20th Century Fox TV’s cable and reality division which produces FX’s Sons Of Anarchy, Showtime’s Homeland and A&E’s Breakout Kings. This is only the second overall deal Fox 21 president Bert Salke has done since he took over the company a year-and-a-half ago, along with a cable pact with Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol co-writers Josh Appelbaum and Andre Nemec. He plans to add to the roster but continue to be selective. “We really believe that what keeps (cable-focused) companies like Fox 21 relevant is our relationship with the creators, and Dmitry and Colette are the type of creators we want to be in business with.” He plans to sit down with the duo next week to discuss show ideas. The deal includes Lipkin and...

Hung’s Dmitry Lipkin and Collette Burson have inked a two-year overall deal with Fox 21. As part of the pact, the married duo will focus not only on creating its own cable fare, but also on producing and supervising other writers. Though it’s been mere months since they wrapped production on their acclaimed HBO series, Lipkin and Burson have been hard at work on several potential new series ideas in what they describe as “wildly different” genres. The partners, who had an overall deal at HBO until November, were courted by multiple outlets but were particularly impressed by the studio

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Thomas Jane returns as high school basketball coach turned gigolo Ray Decker in the third season of Hung, which airs Sunday nights at 10/9c exclusively on HBO. At first glance, Ray Drecker seems like an ordinary divorced dad who’s facing tough times and trying to make ends meet. But Ray’s got one extraordinary, God-given gift – call it his “winning tool” – that sets him apart from other underpaid high-school teachers. With a little help from an unlikely business ally named Tanya, Ray is about to hatch an inspired plan to ride his winning tool all the way to a moreproductive, debt-free life. Hung stars Thomas Jane, Jane Adams, Anne Heche, Sianoa Smit-McPhee, Charlie Saxton, Eddie Jemison, Rebecca Creskoff and Gregg Henry. Created and executive produced by Dmitry Lipkin and...

Stephen Amell (Jason), Thomas Jane (Ray), Jane Adams (Tanya)

Warning: This article contains minor spoilers about the upcoming season of Hung.

There's a new male prostitute in town, and he's young, hot, and maybe even heteroflexible – all things that are quite threatening to Ray Decker, the football-coach-turned-gigalo at the center of Hung, the provocative HBO series about a man whose most valuable asset is in his pants.

The show's star, Thomas Jane, raised eyebrows last month with some intemperate remarks that seemed to indicate that the actor had issues with same-sex sexuality as well.

"I told HBO, the year I end up with a penis in my mouth is the last year of the show," he said. "If they want to keep me around, there's certain guidelines they have to follow. Not all of us can be bloodsucking vampires. That's not all they're sucking, you know!"

Jane later clarified that...

Hung is kicking off its third season this Sunday, and I wanted to make sure you all got notice of the fact. I know there is a lot going on right now, and it's hard to keep track of everything, but don't let this show slip past you.

HBO Comedy Series Hung, Starring Thomas Jane, Jane Adams And Anne Heche, Returns For Its Ten-episode Third Season Oct. 2

Having skirted the watchful eyes of family and friends, Ray and Tanya are taking their business to the next level. But can they continue to fly under the radar of the law after setting up a new, very public front for their gigolo enterprise?

The Emmy®- and Golden Globe-nominated comedy series Hung kicks off its ten episode third season Sunday, Oct. 2 (10:00-10:30 p.m. Et/Pt), exclusively on HBO. Created by Colette Burson and Dmitry Lipkin, the show uses dark...

Whoever thought upscale prostitution solved problems never met Ray Drecker (Thomas Jane). Season 2 of HBO’s Hung is a delightful romp through several socially relevant issues that bring about thoughtful and uproarious laughs. Creators Colette Burson and Dmitry Lipkin continue to dig deep into the emotional layers of male prostitution and the women who hire men. While Ray struggles to work out the problems in his personal life, Tanya’s (Jane Adams) war for pimp supremacy against Lenore (Rebecca Creskoff) takes some very strange and unpredictable turns. Lennie James joined the cast as Charlie, Tanya’s pimp professor. Unintentionally, Charlie pushes Tanya to a new level of unforeseen weird that is a joy to watch when you’re not wincing at Tanya’s bizarre choices. The Season 2 Blu-ray release collects all 10 episodes of the second season and features some delightful bonus material for more extended Hung drama. In Season 2, Ray...

Nsfw Thomas Jane returns as Ray Decker in the third season of HBO's Hung. The premiere date for the third season is set for Sunday, October 2. At first glance, Ray Drecker seems like an ordinary divorced dad who’s facing tough times and trying to make ends meet. But Ray’s got one extraordinary, God-given gift – call it his “winning tool” – that sets him apart from other underpaid high-school teachers. With a little help from an unlikely business ally named Tanya, Ray is about to hatch an inspired plan to ride his winning tool all the way to a moreproductive, debt-free life. Hung stars Thomas Jane, Jane Adams, Anne Heche, Sianoa Smit-McPhee, Charlie Saxton, Eddie Jemison, Rebecca Creskoff and Gregg Henry. Created and executive produced by Dmitry Lipkin and Colette Burson; along with...

Hung Season 2 Blu-ray Contest Giveaway Sweepstakes. This Hung: Season 2 Blu-ray contest, giveaway, sweepstakes illustrates Hung: Season 2‘ release by HBO Studio on DVD and Blu-ray on September 27, 2011.

Hung: Season 2 stars Thomas Jane, Jane Adams, Eddie Jemison, Charlie Saxton, Sianoa Smit-McPhee, Rebecca Creskoff, Gregg Henry, Anne Heche, Kathryn Hahn, Gina Hecht, Alanna Ubach, Lennie James, Lyudmila Velikaya, and Eileen Grubba.

Hung: Season 2′ plot synopsis: “A former high school sports legend turned middle-aged high school basketball coach finds a way to benefit from his biggest asset.”

For more Hung‘ photos, videos, and information, check out our Hung Page.

Three winners will receive:

- (1) Hung: Season 2

To Enter:

1. Follow @FilmBookdotCom on Twitter (click below).

Follow @filmbookdotcom

2. Tweet: I just entered to win Hung: Season 2 on Blu-ray @FilmBookdotCom. You can too here: http://bit.ly/nLthNa #hung #contest #win #free #giveaway

Rules:

Only contestants that are (1.) following Film-Book on...

Nsfw Thomas Jane returns as Ray Decker in the third season of HBO's Hung. The premiere date for the third season is set for Sunday, October 2. At first glance, Ray Drecker seems like an ordinary divorced dad who’s facing tough times and trying to make ends meet. But Ray’s got one extraordinary, God-given gift – call it his “winning tool” – that sets him apart from other underpaid high-school teachers. With a little help from an unlikely business ally named Tanya, Ray is about to hatch an inspired plan to ride his winning tool all the way to a moreproductive, debt-free life. Hung stars Thomas Jane, Jane Adams, Anne Heche, Sianoa Smit-McPhee, Charlie Saxton, Eddie Jemison, Rebecca Creskoff and Gregg Henry. Created and executive produced by Dmitry Lipkin and Colette Burson; along with...

Ray Drecker (Thomas Jane, Give ‘Em Hell Malone)—the well-endowed former high school sports legend turned middle-aged high school basketball coach turned local gigolo—returns for digital dominance on September 27 when HBO Home Entertainment releases Hung: The Complete Second Season on Blu-ray and DVD.

It's Season Two and Thomas Jane is still Hung.

The Blu-ray and DVD, which are priced at $49.98 and $39.98, respectively, will arrive on the eve of the HBO show’s Season Three premiere.

In the second season of the TV comedy series, Ray, and his unlikely pimp Tanya (Jane Adams, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) have taken on slick “life coach” Lenore Bernard (Rebecca Creskoff, Knucklehead) as co-pimp, devastating Tanya in the process. With Lenore pushing a debonair version of hooker Ray on her upscale clients, Tanya wants to prove she has the “right stuff” when it comes to being a successful – and far more ethical – pimp than Lenore.

According to The Hollywood Reporter despite modest ratings in its second season HBO has ordered another 10 episodes of Hung to be filmed in January.

Set in Detroit, the comedy stars Thomas Jane as a hard-up middle-aged basketball coach, who earns cash on the side as a male prostitute. Created by Dmitry Lipkin (creator of The Riches ) and co-starring Jane Adams, Eddie Jemison and Charlie Saxton, season three will air next summer along side the final season of HBO's Entourage .

Do you think it deserved another season, or should HBO have hung it up for good?

Vl

>> Real the whole article | on Screenrush - Thursday 2 September 2010...

HBO announced today that it has ordered a third season of Hung, the half-hour show starring Thomas Jane as Ray Drecker, a failed pro athlete and bored high school coach who takes advantage of his, um, endowments. The second season runs through Sept. 12, and the third season of 10 episodes will likely bow next summer.

The show also stars Jane Adams (Tanya Skagle), Anne Heche (Jessica Haxon), Eddie Jemison (Dr. Ronnie Haxon), and Rebecca Creskoff (Lenore Bernard). The series comes from creators Colette Burson and Dmitry Lipkin.

HBO has picked up dark comedy Hung for a third season with a 10-episode order to run in 2011. Hung stars Thomas Jane as a down-on-his-luck Detroit high-school coach moonlighting as a male prostitute and Jane Adams as his rookie, poetry-loving pimp. The husband-and-wife duo of Dmitry Lipkin and Colette Burson created the show and are executive producing with the pilot's director Alexander Payne, Michael Rosenberg, Scott Stephens, Noreen Halpern and John Morayniss for E1 Entertainment. Anne Heche, Eddie Jemison, Rebecca Creskoff, Gregg Henry, Sianoa Smit-McPhee and Charlie Saxton co-star. The penultimate episode of Hung's second season on Sunday averaged 2.5 million. Its season finale airs Sept. 12.

"Hung: The Complete First Season" is currently available on DVD and Blu-ray Hi-Def.

The HBO series, which focuses on a man with a most unorthodox way to deal with his personal economic crisis, was released on home format June 22 to coincide with the second season's June 27 premiere. The DVD contains plenty of special features for followers of the show.

Ray Drecker (Thomas Jane) is a Detroit high school history teacher and basketball coach whose recent life has reflected his team's performance on the court: one long losing streak. Suffering a divorce, neighborhood harassment, a house fire and an insurmountable amount of debt, Ray is reduced to living out of a tent in his backyard. Desperate for money, he decides to employ the single asset in his life — his manhood. Teaming up with his friend Tanya, (Jane Adams), a failed poet who has her own financial difficulties, he embarks on...

Check out a behind-the-scenes clip from the second season of HBO's "Hung" which made its premiere on Sunday, June 27th on HBO. The series created by Colette Burson and Dmitry Lipkin stars stars Thomas Jane as Ray Drecker; Jane Adams as Ray’s business partner, Tanya Skagle; Anne Heche as Ray’s ex-wife, Jessica Haxon; Eddie Jemison as Jessica’s successful husband Ronnie; Sianoa Smit-McPhee as Ray’s daughter Darby; Charlie Saxton as Ray’s son Damon and Rebecca Creskoff as Ray’s co-pimp Lenore. In the recession-plagued suburbs of Detroit, Ray Drecker and his unlikely pimp, Tanya Skagle, have taken on slick “life coach” Lenore Bernard as co-pimp, devastating Tanya in the process. With Lenore pushing a debonair version of hooker Ray on her upscale clients, Tanya wants to prove she has the “right stuff” when it comes to being a successful – and far more ethical – pimp than Lenore.

Before you get all tangled up in the hotness that is Thomas Jane and his sexy HBO series Hung, there are a few things we need to tell you. Five to be exact, including some spoilery fun that involves a rekindled romance between exes, a bitchin' bitchfight between, um, managers and more... 1) Reunited And It Feels So Good. Will Ray and Jessica (Anne Heche) finally get back together, thus ending Hung altogether?! Doubtful, but season two is centered on the budding re-relationship of these unhappy exes. "That is something that we play quite a bit this season—will they possibly get back together?" show runner Dmitry Lipkin explains. Adds Thomas: "Ray's still in love with his ex-wife. God, what a...

Chicago – HBO’s “Hung” doesn’t quite live up to the incredibly high standards of the best network on television but the sporadic writing on the show and very strong ensemble did produce enough interesting dramatic and comedic moments to warrant a look on the excellent Blu-ray release of the first season, timed to coincide with the premiere of season two on Sunday, June 27th, 2010.

Blu-Ray Rating: 4.0/5.0

The series premiere of “Hung” and even the next few episodes were missing that spark; the chemistry that elevates an experience from being just another one-night stand. The tale of a man (Thomas Jane) who lost everything in the horrible economy but maintained the rights to his giant pecker and how to use it was a hit-and-miss affair that too often missed for at least three episodes. Then the casting agent found the perfect supporting actress and gave her an excellent subplot and...

"Hung" takes viewers behind the scenes of the season 2 filming before it premieres on Sunday, July 27. The scene shot between Tanya and Ray takes place in Ray's under-construction house where Tanya finds Leonore's clothes in the bathroom.

Commentaries from creators slash executive producers Dmitry Lipkin and Collete Burson are mashed with commentaries from cast Jane Adams and Rebecca Creskoff. "Tanya just keeps trying to do the right thing but there are a lot of obstacles in the way," Adams said.

In the first season finale, Tanya was offended by Ray's decision to include Leonore in the gigolo business but was forced to surrender when she herself could not get potential clients. In the first episode of season 2, Ray's new co-partnership with Tanya and Lenore gets off to a rocky start when he "holds back" during a tryst with Claire, a client, so he turns to Tanya for advice.

As hard as it may be to believe sometimes, someone (or someones) actually sits down and writes a movie or TV show before you end up seeing it at your local multiplex or on your favorite TV network. The people who do the sitting and the writing are, surprisingly, called writers and, like the Directors, the Golden Globes and the Oscars, they have their own awards show.

This week, the Writers Guild of America, which is the trade group and advocate for writers, announced its nominations for outstanding achievement in feature film and television, radio, news, promotional writing, and graphic animation during the 2009 season to be honored at the upcoming 2010 Writers Guild Awards on February 20, 2010, in Los Angeles and New York.

We realize that these nominations may not be as glamorous as the Golden Globes or the Oscars, but we kinda like writers around here and think they do a pretty important job.

Awards heavyweights "Mad Men," "30 Rock" and "The Office" and buzzed-about newcomer "Modern Family" led the TV field for the 2010 Writers Guild Awards with three nominations each.

AMC's "Mad Men" and NBC's "30 Rock" and "The Office" are in the running for best drama/comedy series, and each received two nominations for episodic writing. "Family" made the cut for best comedy series, best new series and best episodic writing for a comedy series.

ABC's "Family" was one of two new shows to break into the best series categories along with Fox's quirky high-school dramedy "Glee," which faces "Family" in the best comedy series and best new series fields.

While the WGA Awards are still in its nomination phase, Fox's "The Simpsons" can already uncork the champagne. The veteran series is assured to win the animation category after landing all five nomination slots.

The biggest surprise among the series nominees was HBO's low-key baseball comedy "Eastbound & Down,...

HBO's "Hung" will air the finale of the first season on September 13. The finale, titled, "A Dick and a Dream" or "Fight the Honey," will premiere at 10:00pm Et.

The show follows Ray, played by Thomas Jane, a divorced high-school basketball coach who is struggling to provide for his kids when his house catches fire. Ray decides to take drastic measures by exploiting his best asset and setting up a business as a "happiness consultant" to charge women for sex.

The show also features Jane Adams as Tanya, Ray's pimp and Anne Heche as Ray's ex-wife. The series is written by Colette Bursur and Dmitry Lipkin, who also act as executive producers. Dan Attias directs the series.

HBO.s latest effort .Hung. is a grower, not a shower on first look in the premiere. Showrunners Dmitry Lipkin and Colette Burson took time out to talk to Monsters and Critics about this excellent new series that is worth viewing for a few episodes, to take in all of the big and little ideas these two writers throw at you. Hung - Lipkin and Burson, courtesy Jeff Kravitz/HBO The combination of loss and reinvention has been stitched into a clever dramedy that reels you in with the salacious hook of a big Willie. Previously noted in my review was the admission that it took me three episodes before I fell in love with this series. The...

Ah, the death of the American dream. You read my advance review of the first four episodes of HBO's Hung, which premiered last night after True Blood, but now that it's aired, I'm curious to know what you thought of the Dmitry Lipkin/Colette Burson-created dramedy series. Did you buy Thomas Jane as a sad sack high school basketball coach and fallen golden boy forced to rely on his, er, sizable endowment in order to make ends meet? Did you think that he and Tanya (Jane Adams) would have fallen into bed and into business together as quickly as they did? Do you think their Happiness Consultant idea has any chance of survival in these tough economic times? Did you wonder whether Ray and Jessica (Anne Heche) were ever happy together? And, most importantly, will you be tune in again to watch another episode? Talk back here.

Read the...

We have new clips in from HBO's "Hung" starring Thomas Jane, Jane Adams, Anne Heche, Charlie Saxton, Sianoa Smit-Mcphee, Eddie Jemison and Rebecca Creskoff. Things are tough for Ray Drecker these days. A former high school sports legend turned middle-aged high school basketball coach, he’s a divorced dad in dire straits, struggling to make ends meet and regain control of his life. Because desperate times call for desperate measures, the well-endowed Ray. "Sideways" Academy Award-winning writer Alexander Payne directs the pilot from the writing by Dmitry Lipkin and Colette Burson...

Chicago – Pardon the obvious metaphors, but when you name a show “Hung” and feature a motivational speech about the lead character finding “his tool,” it’s damn-near impossible not to fall into the same pattern. Despite a clever set-up and talented cast, the new HBO comedy starring Thomas Jane, Jane Adams, and Anne Heche is missing that spark, that chemistry that elevates an experience from being just another TV one-night stand.

Television Rating: 3.0/5.0 “Hung” uses male sexuality to comment on the state of the economy today. What is the one thing they can’t take away from the unemployed, divorced, miserable modern man? His enormous pecker.

Thomas Jane.

Photo credit: Chuck Hodes/HBO

The funnier-than-you-think (don’t forget his amazing guest role on “Arrested Development”) Thomas Jane stars as the former high school sports legend turned middle-aged loser Ray Drecker, a Detroit high school basketball coach struck by a string of bad luck.

"There are only the pursued, the pursuing, the busy, and the tired." - F. Scott Fitzgerald, "The Great Gatsby" With the economy tanking and pink slips becoming an ubiquitous confetti in cities across America, it's no surprise that many creators are mining the potential death of the American dream for dramatic potential. Throughout his career, writer/executive producer Dmitry Lipkin has succeeded at showing the dark side of that dream. In his short-lived (albeit much missed) FX series The Riches, Lipkin used a family of Travelers, the ultimate modern society outsiders, as a means for exploring just what materialism and suburban trappings meant to the psychic landscape. In Hung, the new HBO series Lipkin co-created with Colette Burstein, the subject of the American dream looms large. This time, the focus is on Ray Drecker (Thomas Jane), a down-on-his-luck Michigan basketball coach/high school history teacher whose life is literally falling down around him.

HBO has premiered the trailer for Hung, a new series in which Thomas Jane (The Punisher) plays a struggling, yet well-endowed high-school basketball coach/gym teacher who discovers that he can use his giant "gift" to make money.

The sexual aspect will be a major source of comedy in the show, but creators Dmitry Lipkin and Colette Burson insist that Jane’s character’s "apparatus" is the hook, not the punch line. "It has its sexual moments, but the show is very much about what's happening in the country, how people are trying to survive using what God had given them," said the writers.

According to Variety, the series' first season consists of the 45-minute pilot and nine 30-minute episodes, and premieres after Tru Blood on June 28 at 10pm.

You can check out the trailer below.

Thomas Jane could finally have his real break-out role. HBO has premiered the (Sfw) trailer for Hung, a series in which Jane plays a high-school basketball coach / gym teacher who realizes that he can become a star by exploiting his giant...sexual apparatus. Anne Heche co-stars as his ex-wife, and Jane Adams (Little Children) is aboard, too, as the woman who becomes, essentially, the pimp for Jane's character. But the most notable creative name is Alexander Payne (Sideways, Election), who directed the pilot and will stay on as executive producer. Watch the trailer after the jump. Despite the attention-getting title and premise, creators Dmitry Lipkin and Colette Burson insist that Jane's character's schlong is the hook, not the punchline. "It has its sexual moments, but the show is very much about what's happening in the country, how people are trying to survive using what God had given them," Lipkin has said.

Gregg Henry has joined HBO's upcoming dark comedy "Hung" as recurring, and Courtney Ford has come aboard Showtime's drama "Dexter," also for a multi-episode arc.

On HBO's "Hung," starring Thomas Jane as a well-endowed high school basketball coach, Henry ("The Riches") will play Mike, an assistant coach.

The project reunites he with "Riches" creator Dmitry Lipkin, who co-created "Hung" with Colette Burson.

Henry is repped by Domain and Framework.

On "Dexter," which recently cast John Lithgow as Miami's latest serial killer and new nemesis of Dexter Morgan (Michael C. Hall), Ford will play a reporter.

Actress Anne Heche has signed on to star in the new HBO series "Hung" alongside Thomas Jane. The new series is a dark comedy for that focuses on a high school basketball coach who is...let's just say "well endowed" and uses his assets to try to get ahead at work and financially.

Heche will take on the role of the ex-wife of the lead character, Ray, played by Jane. Actress Kristin Bauer played the role in the original pilot.

The series will premiere in June and is scheduled for 10 episodes. It was created by Dmitry Lipkin and Colette Burson, with Oscar winning director Alexander Payne taking the helm.

Lipkin discussed the new series saying, "It has its sexual moments, but the show is very much about what's happening in the country, how people are trying to survive using what God had given them."...

Anne Heche is set to join the cast of HBO's new comedy series "Hung," replacing Kristin Bauer. HBO has already ordered 10 episodes of "Hung," which comes from creators Dmitry Lipkin and Colette Burson and director Alexander Payne. The series stars Thomas Jane as a high school basketball coach who learns to make the most of his leading asset, his rather exceptional physical endowment.  According to The Hollywood Reporter, Heche will will play the main character's ex-wife. She will reshoot the character's scenes for the pilot and will go into production with the show in mid-March. HBO is tentatively expected to...

Anne Heche has been tapped to co-star on HBO's new series "Hung," from creators Dmitry Lipkin and Colette Burson and director Alexander Payne.

The dark comedy, which was picked up for 10 episodes, centers on Ray (Thomas Jane), a well-endowed struggling high school basketball coach.

Heche will play Ray's ex-wife, who is remarried. She replaces Kristin Bauer, who played the role in the pilot. The scenes in the pilot featuring the character will be reshot.

Production on "Hung" is slated to begin in mid-March, with the premiere eyed for June.

Heche is pregnant with her second child and is expected to give birth in the spring.

The actress, repped by CAA and Untitled, stars opposite Ashton Kutcher in the romantic dramedy "Spread," which premiered last month at Sundance and was acquired by Anchor Bay.

She recently toplined the ABC dramedy series "Men in Trees."...

HBO has announced that the network has picked up Hung, the latest offering from the man behind Minnie Driver’s recently cancelled but once Emmy nominated The Riches, Dmitry Lipkin, and wife/writing partner Colette Burson. Alexander Payne, director of good movies like Election and Sideways was behind the lens for the pilot and will serve as exec. prod. on the series. Can you guess what this show is about? No, it’s not suicide or the misadventures of a former American Idol contestant who achieved notoriety for his interpretation of the music of Ricky Martin. No, it’s about a guy with a giant penis. Not intrigued yet? Well he’s also described “as a struggling middle-aged high school basketball coach who figures out a way to use his best asset.” For what, exactly, I’m not sure, but Burson has made comaprisons to “Spider-Man” when descrbing the show’s protagonist,...

HBO has picked up Hung, the dark comedy pilot from The Riches creator Dmitry Lipkin and Colette Burson starring Thomas Jane (The Mist, The Punisher). The order is said to be for 10 episodes, with the launch eyed for June. Hung stars Jane as Ray, a well-endowed struggling high school basketball coach who figures out a way to use his best asset. According to Lipkin and Burson, the sexual aspect will be a major source for comedy but not the main focus of the series. The pilot was directed by Alexander Payne (Sideways) and the filmmaker will stay on as an executive producer on the series, along with Lipkin, Burson and Blueprint Entertainment's Michael Rosenberg, Noreen Halpern and John Morayniss. Lipkin and Burson's spec script was the first major purchase by the network's new entertainment president Sue Naegle in April; then it was her first pilot pickup and now her first series order.

HBO is hung up on "Hung."

The pay cable network has picked up the dark comedy pilot starring Thomas Jane to series.

The order for the project, from "The Riches" creator Dmitry Lipkin and Colette Burson, is said to be for 10 episodes, with the launch eyed for June.

Alexander Payne, who directed the pilot, will stay on as an executive producer on the series, along with Lipkin, Burson and Blueprint Entertainment's Michael Rosenberg, Noreen Halpern and John Morayniss.

"Hung" has enjoyed a dream ride at HBO in one of the fastest turnaround for a series.

Lipkin and Burson's spec script was the first major purchase by the network's new entertainment president Sue Naegle in April; then it was her first pilot pickup and now her first series order.

Additionally, Lipkin and Burson, who originally conceived the show a year ago as a comedy with the feel of an Alexander Payne movie,...

In his first foray into TV series, Thomas Jane has been tapped as the lead in HBO's hourlong pilot "Hung."

The dark comedy pilot, directed by Oscar winner Alexander Payne, centers on Ray (Jane), a well-endowed struggling middle-age high school basketball coach who figures out a way to use his best asset.

"Hung" has been a big priority for HBO's new entertainment president Sue Naegle, who made the spec script by "The Riches" creator Dmitry Lipkin and Colette Burson her first major purchase and later her first pilot pickup.

The pilot is exec produced by Lipkin, Burson, Payne and Blueprint Entertainment's Michael Rosenberg, John Morayniss and Noreen Halpern.

For CAA-repped Jane, "Hung" marks a return to HBO, where he starred as Mickey Mantle in the 2001 telefilm "61*." His feature credits include "The Punisher" and "The Tripper."...

Oscar winner Alexander Payne is set to make his TV debut with HBO's comedic project Hung.

Payne is set to direct the potential pilot, penned by The Riches creator Dmitry Lipkin and his wife/writing partner Colette Burson.

Hung centers on an average middle-aged father working as a basketball coach who excels in one (private) area and decides to cash in on his physical endowment.

Hung marks the first project picked up by HBO's new entertainment president Sue Naegle.

While it hasn't been officially greenlighted, Hung has been put on the fast track, and the signing of Payne solidifies a formal production order.

The search is now under way for an actor to play the lead.

Lipkin and Burson are exec producing Hung with Blueprint's Michael Rosenberg.

Payne, who won an Oscar in 2005 for writing Sideways, is repped by WMA and John Diemer.

Guy Oseary's Maverick Television has inked a first-look deal with 20th Century Fox TV's alternative production arm Fox 21.

Under the one-year pact, Fox 21 will have first crack at Maverick TV's scripted and unscripted development.

In the two years since Maverick TV was launched under president Michael Rosenberg, the company landed its first scripted series with FX's The Riches and unscripted show with MTV's I'm From Rolling Stone.

Fox 21 senior vp Jane Francis said she has been discussing a possible collaboration with Oseary and Rosenberg since she read and was "really impressed" with the Riches pilot script.

"We have similar taste", Francis said. "Their (scripted) shows have a great offbeat sensibility that we as a studio have. They also dabble in reality, which is a great thing. They dabble in everything as we do too."

Rosenberg and Oseary also were drawn to Fox 21 by the common elements in their development strategies.

"What we focus on and what they focus on is similar," Rosenberg said. "It's reality and cable hours, and that's the world I want to live in."

Maverick already is busy developing new projects, including a dark single-camera family comedy with a twist from Riches creator Dmitry Lipkin and his wife, writer-director Colette Burson, who penned one episode of the show this season.