TV News Roundup: ‘Young Sheldon’ Books Reba McEntire
By Klaritza Rico
LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – In today’s TV news roundup, CBS announced will guest star in “Young Sheldon,” and TNT announced a premiere date for “Snowpiercer.”
CASTING
CBS has announced Reba McEntire will guest star in an upcoming episode of “,“ airing in February. McEntire will be playing June, a character described as “the fun, fiery ex-wife” of Coach Ballard (Craig T. Nelson), who strikes up an unlikely friendship with Meemaw (Annie Potts), who is currently dating Ballard.
DATES
Season 8 of “Shahs of Sunset” will premiere Feb. 9 at 9 p.m., Bravo announced. Friendships will be tested this season as Reza Farahan and his husband, Adam Neely, might not be on the same page about a major life decision. Meanwhile Mercedes Javid is left feeling abandoned by her friends who she claims did not visit her in the hospital after almost losing her life trying to deliver her baby.
HBO‘s “Last Week Tonight With John Oliver” will return to screens for its seventh season Feb. 16. The Emmy-Award winning show will continue to offer a satirical look at the week in news, politics and current events. It is executive produced by John Oliver, Tim
Carvell, Liz Stanton, Jon Thoday and James Taylor and directed by Paul Pennolino.
TruTV is debuting its new series, “Hot Ones: The Game Show,“
Feb. 18 at 10 p.m. Based on the “Hot Ones” web series created by Complex Networks’s “First We Feast,” the half-hour game show welcomes fans into the “Pepperdome” to compete against one another by answering trivia questions and eating increasing mouth-scorching hot wings for $25,000 and the chance to become Hot Ones legends. Hosted by Sean Evans, the season will deliver new 20 episodes, and the network has also licensed the rights to 20 episodes of the original web series, which will air after each episode of “Hot Ones: The Game Show,” as part of a “Hot Ones” hour. See a sneak peek of the new series below:
“It’s Personal with Amy Hoggart” will premiere Feb. 26 at 10 p.m., TruTV announced. In the new show, Hoggart seeks to make Americans by attacking issues that make their lives, and hers, harder. The show is executive produced by Samantha Bee and Jason Jones for Randy & Pam’s Quality Entertainment. Leo Allen serves as showrunner alongside executive producers Tony Hernandez and Brooke Posch of Jax Media.
TruTV announced the second season premiere of “Tacoma FD” will be Mar. 26 at 10 p.m. The half-hour comedy will deliver 13 episodes in its sophomore season, during which the squad finds themselves fighting fires at a haunted house, trapped in an elevator during the annual Firemen’s Ball and creating fire safety videos with the “buffest” group of firemen in town. Watch the trailer for Season 2 below:
HBO has set this year’s “Night of Too Many Stars: America Unites For Autism Programs” for Apr. 18 at 8 p.m. Performed and airing live from the Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, the special that will be hosted by Jon Stewart was created by comedy writer and performer Robert Smigel to support autism schools, programs and services. The event is in partnership with NEXT for AUTISM, a non-profit organization that is dedicated to creating and funding innovative programs to improve the lives of people living with autism and their families.
TNT is launching its adaptation of “”
May 31 at 9 p.m.
Based on the critically acclaimed graphic novel series and the film from Bong Joon Ho,
the series is s
et more than seven years after the world has become a frozen wasteland and centers on the remnants of humanity who inhabit a perpetually moving train that circles the globe. The show stars Daveed Diggs and Jennifer Connelly and is produced by Tomorrow Studios (a joint venture between Marty Adelstein and ITV Studios), along with CJ Ent., which produced the original film. Tomorrow Studios’ Marty Adelstein and Becky Clements; showrunner Graeme Manson; director James Hawes; Matthew O’Connor; Scott Derrickson, and the original film’s producers Ho, Miky Lee, Tae-sung Jeong, Park Chan-wook, Lee Tae-hun and Dooho Choi executive produce.
DEALS
Comedy stars Fran Hevia, Alex Fernandez, Michelle Rodriguez, Ricardo O’Farrill and El Diablito have been signed to Endemol Shine Boomdog, a division of Endemol Shine North America. Boomdog, which produces such popular comedy series as “Chumel Con Chumel Torres” for HBO Latin America, “Last One Laughing (LOL)” for Amazon Prime Video, “Nailed It (Mexico)” for Netflix, “Me Caigo de Risa” and “Quién es la Máscara” for Televisa, and “Se Rentan Cuartos“ for Comedy Central, is looking to develop the next batch of scripted and unscripted comedy programming. The studio will develop a handful of new series that Boomdog will be taking to buyers this winter.
FIRST LOOKS
Netflix debuted the trailer for “Next In
Fashion,” the streamer’s new competition series that features 18 designers competing to become the next big name in fashion. Hosted by designer and “Queer Eye” personality Tan France and model Alexa Chung, the show premieres Jan. 29.
Netflix also released the trailer for the final episodes of “BoJack
Horseman,“ which launch Jan. 31. In a world where humans are replaced by anthropomorphic animals, BoJack (Will Arnett) is a washed up ’90s sitcom star of who struggles with depression and alcoholism. Amy Sedaris, Alison Brie, Paul F. Tompkins and Aaron Paul also lend their voices to the animated comedy.
Paramount Network debuted a trailer for “Coyote,” coming this summer. After 32 years as a patrol agent, Ben Clemens (Michael Chiklis) is now being exposed to life on the opposite side of the wall, working for the same people he spent years trying to keep out of the United States. Loyalties and his own ideologies of the world begin to be tested in this new series that comes from MacLaren Ent., Dark Horse Ent. and Sony Pictures Television.
TBS unveiled a trailer for “Miracle Workers: Dark
Ages,“ the second season in Simon Rich‘s anthology series. This season centers on upon a group of medieval villagers trying to stay positive in an age of extreme income inequality, poor healthcare and widespread ignorance. This 10-episode installment will once again feature
Daniel Radcliffe, Steve Buscemi, Geraldine Viswanathan and Karan
Soni, Jon Bass
and
Lolly Adefope, but in new roles. The second season premieres Jan. 28.
GREENLIGHTS
TruTv announced a 10-episode series order for “Tirdy Works,“ an unscripted sitcom set in a small rural town with four paved roads and a booming new business: arts and crafts created out of moose turds. The series will be produced by Scout Prods. with David Collins, Michael Williams, Rob Eric and Chad Greulach serving as executive producers, with Greulach also serving as showrunner. Michel Bloom is serving as executive producer for Bongo Pictures.
TBS greenlit “Lost Resort,“ an upstairs/downstairs look at the booming subculture of exotic wellness retreats. The 10-episode unscripted series follows a group of strangers who are immersed in a three-week long Costa Rican retreat led by a colorful team of alternative healers. “Lost Resort” is produced by ITV America’s Sirens Media with Jessica Sebastian-Dayeh, Jordana Hochman and Sarah Howell serving as executive producers. Michael Bloom for Bongo Pictures is also an executive producer.
PROGRAMMING
TLC has announced a premiere date for their upcoming series, “Dragnificent!” Featuring drag queens such as Alexis Michelle, Bebe Zahara Benet, Thorgy Thor and Jujubee, the show will give mega-makeovers to those who desperately want a transformation to reveal a better version of themselves — inside and out. Each drag queen specializes in a different expertise, from makeup and fashion to event planning and music. The series is set to premiere in April.
