TV Bits: ‘Mythic Quest’ Season 2, Craig Robinson’s ‘Killing It’, Rose Byrne in ‘Physical’, Judy Greer Joins ‘The First Lady’ & More

In this edition of TV Bits:

• Peacock picked up new shows starring Craig Robinson and Chris Redd
• Get a first look at Rose Byrne in the Apple TV+ series Physical
• Find out who Judy Greer is playing in Showtime’s First Lady
• See the first photos from Jamie Foxx‘s new series Dad, Stop Embarrassing Me
• Hear about BBC’s latest streaming service
• All that and more

First up, Peacock has ordered two new scripted series to add to the streaming service’s library.

An Untitled Craig Robinson Project formerly known as Killing It has been given a 10-episode order. Details aren’t plentiful, but the show is said to be about class, capitalism and one man’s quest to achieve the American dream. And also about hunting really big snakes.

Brooklyn Nine-Nine co-creator Dan Goor and executive producer Luke Del Tredici are reteaming on the project. They’re both writing and executive producing the series while Craig Robinson and Mark Schulman will also serve as executive producers.

Meanwhile, a new comedy series called Bust Down has also been given a six-episode series order. Chris Redd, Sam Jay, Langston Kerman and Jak Knight will star in the series as four casino employees in a dead-end job in middle America as they attempt to find self-worth in their bad ideas.

Saturday Night Live mastermind Lorne Michaels is executive producing Bust Down along with Andrew Singer and Hilary Marx, and Richie Keen will direct the series.

Peacock also picked up some unscripted shows, including a new show starring Andy Cohen and two documentary series, one about Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps and another about serial killer John Wayne Gacy. Find out more about those shows over here.

Next, Jamie Foxx is about to return to the sitcom world over at Netflix. The comedian and Oscar winner is starring in Dad, Stop Embarrassing Me, where he suddenly finds himself becoming a full-time father to his teenage daughter Sasha (Kyla-Drew).

Above is one of the first look photos that Netflix has released, and below you can find the official synopsis for the series that also stars David Alan Grier, Porscha Coleman, Jonathan Kite, Heather Hemmens, and Valente Rodriguez.

Brian Dixon (Jamie Foxx), successful business owner and bachelor, just unexpectedly became a full-time father to his teenage daughter Sasha (Kyla-Drew). Determined to turn over a new leaf, Brian’s going to need all the help he can get from his dad (David Alan Grier) and sister (Porscha Coleman) — and Sasha’s going to need all the help she can get learning how to fit into her new, lovingly imperfect home.

Dad, Stop Embarrassing Me is executive produced by Jamie Foxx and his real-life daughter Corinne Foxx, who served as inspiration for the series. Bentley Kyle Evans (The Jamie Foxx Show) is also executive producing and acting as showrunner while Ken Whittingham (black-ish) is directing the series. You can see more photos over here.

In case you didn’t hear, Mythic Quest is returning for a second season on Apple TV+ starting on May 7. The first teaser trailer has arrived with a sneak peek at what’s in store. Here’s the official synopsis for the new season:

With the quarantine finally over, the new season of “Mythic Quest” finds everyone back in the office (well, almost everyone), attempting to build upon the success of Raven’s Banquet by launching an epic new expansion, but Ian (Rob McElhenney) and the newly promoted co-creative director, Poppy (Charlotte Nicdao), struggle with the game’s direction. Meanwhile, C.W. (F. Murray Abraham) reconciles some unresolved issues from his past, the testers (Ashly Burch and Imani Hakim) test the bounds of an office romance, and David (David Hornsby) loses yet another woman in his life as Jo (Jessie Ennis) leaves him to assist Brad (Danny Pudi).

Mindy Kaling has another new show in the works by way of her Kaling International production banner: an adaptation of Sanjena Sathian‘s novel Gold Diggers. Here’s the official synopsis of the book by way of Amazon:

A floundering second-generation teenager growing up in the Bush-era Atlanta suburbs, Neil Narayan is authentic, funny, and smart. He just doesn’t share the same drive as everyone around him. His perfect older sister is headed to Duke. His parents’ expectations for him are just as high. He tries to want this version of success, but mostly, Neil just wants his neighbor across the cul-de-sac, Anita Dayal.

But Anita has a secret: she and her mother Anjali have been brewing an ancient alchemical potion from stolen gold that harnesses the ambition of the jewelry’s original owner. Anjali’s own mother in Bombay didn’t waste the precious potion on her daughter, favoring her sons instead. Anita, on the other hand, just needs a little boost to get into Harvard. But when Neil–who needs a whole lot more–joins in the plot, events spiral into a tragedy that rips their community apart.

Ten years later, Neil is an oft-stoned Berkeley history grad student studying the California gold rush. His high school cohort has migrated to Silicon Valley, where he reunites with Anita and resurrects their old habit of gold theft–only now, the stakes are higher. Anita’s mother is in trouble, and only gold can save her. Anita and Neil must pull off one last heist.

Sathian will co-write the series, but the search is on for other writers and potential showrunners to board the project. If you’re wondering why you haven’t heard of this book yet, that’s because it won’t be published until April 6, 2021.

Kaling International has an overall production deal at Warner Bros. Television, which this project falls under. Kaling will also be executive producing alongside Jessica Kumai Scott and Howard Klein from 3Arts

AMC is expanding their relationship with Killing Eve producers Sid Gentle Films and Unite Kingdom producer Alibi for a new drama series called Ragdoll. A six-part murder thriller, the series follows detectives as they look to untangle the case of the Ragdoll Killer, who has killed six people and sewn their bodies into the shape of one grotesque body nicknamed the Ragdoll.

The series showrunner will be Freddy Syborn (Sex Education) with Sally Woodward Gentle also executive producing. AMC president Dan McDermott said in a statement (via The Hollywood Reporter):

“We have enjoyed and been impressed with Sid Gentle Films during our partnership on Killing Eve, so we jumped at the opportunity to work with them again on Ragdoll. This dark yet comedic project written by the talented Freddy has the makings of a fast-paced yet cerebral thriller featuring the premium storytelling and compelling characters viewers expect from AMC.”

Apple TV+ also provided a first look at their upcoming series Physical, starring Rose Byrne.

Set in the idyllic but fragile beach paradise of sunny 1980s San Diego, ‘Physical’ is a half-hour dark comedy following Sheila Rubin (Byrne), a quietly tortured, seemingly dutiful housewife supporting her smart but controversial husband’s bid for state assembly. But behind closed doors, Sheila has her own darkly funny take on life she rarely lets the world see. She’s also battling a complex set of personal demons relating to her self-image… that is, until she finds release through the unlikeliest source: the world of aerobics.

At first hooked on the exercise itself, Sheila’s real road to empowerment comes when she discovers a way to merge this newfound passion with the burgeoning technology of videotape to start a revolutionary business. The series tracks her epic journey from a stifled, overlooked enabler to a powerful, confident economic force, as Sheila transforms into someone we take for granted today (but was entirely radical at the time) — the female lifestyle guru.

The series from creator Annie Weisman (Desperate Housewives, The Path) also stars Rory Scovel (I Feel Pretty), Dierdre Friel (New Amsterdam), Della Saba (Steven Universe), Lou Taylor Pucci (You), Paul Sparks (House of Cards), and Ashley Liao (Fuller House).

Rose Byrne also serves as executive producer along with Alex Cunningham, Marty Adelstein and Becky Clements. Additional executive producers who also serve as directors on the series are Craig Gillespie, who directs the pilot, Liza Johnson and Stephanie Laing.

Meanwhile, over at Showtime there’s been a change in the cast line-up for their anthology series The First Lady. The series is a reframing of American leadership told through the lens of the women at the heart of the White House. The first season will include Betty Ford (Michelle Pfeiffer) and Michelle Obama (Viola Davis), but there’s been a change in the supporting cast.

Pamela Adlon (Better Things) was previously set to play Nancy Howe, Betty Ford’s trusted confidante and social secretary. But Deadline reports the role will now be played by Judy Greer (Halloween, Arrested Development). The role will be a key one as Howe and Ford were said to be inseparable through thick and thin. Howe helped Ford turn the White House traditions upside down, and she also stayed by her side through her fight with breast cancer.

Greer has previously starred in Showtime series such as Kidding, Masters of Sex, and Californication. The rest of the cast includes Aaron Eckhart as Gerald Ford, Jayme Lawson as young Michelle Obama, Kristine Forseth as young Betty Ford, and Rhys Wakefield as Vice President Dick Cheney.

The First Lady was created by Aaron Cooley and will be directed and executive produced by Susanne Bier with Showtime and Lionsgate TV co-producing. Viola Davis will also act as an executive producer along with Julius Tennon and Andrew Wang via JuVee Productions, Cathy Schulman through Welle Entertainment, Jeff Gaspin at Gaspin Media, and Brad Kaplan for Link Entertainment.

Finally, joining BritBox in the United States is the new UK streaming service BBC Select. Coming from BBC Studios, Variety reports the new streaming service will be available on Amazon Prime Video Channels and Apple TV for $4.99 in the US and $6.99 in Canada.

It might seem odd for BBC Select to join a market that’s already crowded with streaming services, but this one has a different focus than BritBox. This streaming service will be comprised of non-fiction content focusing on culture, politics and ideas by way of a variety of documentaries, aiming to land audiences who tune into Ovation TV or PBS America or read periodicals like The Atlantic, New Yorker and Vanity Fair.

BBC Select will include exclusive content such as The Drop, a curated package of short-form programs that will focus on things like love, consumerism, selfies, power or parenthood. Other shows will featured thinkers such as Black Lives Matter founder Alicia Garza, public intellectual Malcolm Gladwell, Chinese artist Ai Wei Wei, American writer Roxane Gay, author Lionel Shriver and British journalist Caitlin Moran.

The post TV Bits: ‘Mythic Quest’ Season 2, Craig Robinson’s ‘Killing It’, Rose Byrne in ‘Physical’, Judy Greer Joins ‘The First Lady’ & More appeared first on /Film.

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