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Homepage > Joss Whedon Off Topic > The WB wants to grow up (buffy mention)
From Newsday.com The WB wants to grow up (buffy mention)By Diane Werts Tuesday 25 January 2005, by Webmaster HOLLYWOOD, Calif. - All 10-year-olds want to be grown up. So does The WB, as the youth-aimed network celebrates that milestone birthday this month. TV critics at their midseason press tour heard from programming chief David Janollari this weekend about plans for upcoming series "built around 20-something characters" to lure the upper end of the WB’s target 18-to-34-year-old demographic. As network chairman Garth Ancier put it, "We don’t want to be seen as this teenage network." Yet, as Ancier bragged about "the incredibly lasting appeal of our series" over the past decade - not only on The WB but in repeats and on DVD - he was referencing shows such as "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "Dawson’s Creek" and "Smallville," which focus largely on teen characters. Recent attempts at young adult concepts such as fall’s serial drama "The Mountain" have failed, and the network’s current hits have been on the air for several seasons now, in the case of "Gilmore Girls," or nearly a decade, for "7th Heaven." Finding "the next defining comedy for our network" is now the big push, says Janollari. Friday night stalwart "Reba" is in its fourth season, and only the year-old sketch show "Blue Collar TV" is a fresh success. Fran Drescher’s sitcom "Living With Fran" arrives in April with some promise, tapping into both fans of her CBS hit "The Nanny" and younger viewers intrigued by her new show’s focus on a hip 40-something woman living with a hot young contractor the same age as her med-school-dropout son. It’s produced by loose cannon Jamie Kennedy, star of the cult WB prank show "JKX," who’s now busy behind the camera. Kennedy also was here cutting up with critics while discussing his March 8 series debut of "The Starlet," a Hollywood talent competition that’s one of several "reality" projects touted by a network still proclaiming allegiance to scripted series. Veteran star Faye Dunaway joins Vivica A. Fox and casting director Joseph Middleton in fairly ruthless judgment of 10 young actresses living together while competing for a WB role. (Dunaway’s dismissal line: "Don’t call us, we’ll call you.") Beyond "The Starlet," actor-producer Ashton Kutcher ("Punk’d") is developing "Beauty and the Geek," featuring what Janollari diplomatically calls "Mensa guys with attractive women who may not have the same capabilities." And "Blue Collar TV’s" Bill Engvall is working on "Mobile Home Disasters," described by Janollari as " ’Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,’ except in trailer parks." The WB isn’t giving up on scripted ratings laggards such as the critically acclaimed "Jack & Bobby" drama. "We’re determined to make that show work," says Janollari. Last summer’s Lori Laughlin family drama "Summerland" returns Feb. 28 with seven new episodes, and the network touted development deals with such production big guns as David E. Kelley ("Ally McBeal"), Tom Fontana ("Oz"), Jerry Bruckheimer ("CSI") and McG ("The O.C."). 9 Forum messages |
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