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Actress Ellen Barkin is headed to NBC for the second straight pilot season. This time she's set to join a comedy from "Glee" co-creator Ryan Murphy called "The New Normal."

The show is about a gay couple and the relationship they have with the woman acting as their surrogate. Barkin is in final negotiations to play the surrogate's mother, Deadline reports, in what's being called a "splashy" part. (Andrew Rannells of "The Book of Mormon" has already been cast as one half of the couple.)

Murphy and fellow "Glee" scribe Ali Adler are writing the pilot and executive producing with Dante Di Loreto; Murphy will also direct it.

This is the second consecutive year Barkin has landed a role in an NBC pilot. She co-starred in the drama "Mann's World" last year, but the pilot didn't go to series. Barkin is also guest-starring on ABC's "Modern Family" later this season.

The Fall TV Season presentations for all the new network shows take place this week with the first announced today. Here's a full breakdown of which concepts have made the final list over on NBC.

With Bob Greenblatt having replaced the outgoing Jeff Zucker, NBC is looking to turn around its dismal fortunes and has started by significantly cutting back on a bunch of shows which were simply not performing. This schedule takes some big risks with some new shows needing to perform if they're to survive, while two two-hour reality show blocks early in the week have certainly raised eyebrows.

There are twelve new shows in all, half of which are being held until mid-season. In the Fall, the biggest gamble is "Prime Suspect" - the U.S. remake of the iconic British police drama. With only the rarest of exceptions, American remakes of British shows have generally failed...

What a day! CBS just joined the pickup frenzy with orders to its two hottest pilots on the drama and comedy side. The network is making calls to producers at the moment, and the first to get one was none other than J.J. Abrams, whose Person of Interest has been picked up to series. The crime drama written by Jonah Nolan and starring Jim Caviezel and Michael Emerson had been building momentum, recently emerging as the frontrunner at the network on the drama side. Also picked up is the Michael Patrick King/Whitney Cummings comedy Two Broke Girls starring Kat Dennings and Beth Behrs. While Cummings will do her new NBC comedy series, which is in first position, King, whose NBC drama pilot A Mann's World didn't go forward, is expected to be full-time on the CBS comedy, probably co-running it with another comedy writer-producer.

NBC have rejected a remake of "Wonder Woman".

The network have turned down making a new updated series about the classic comic book character after being unhappy with Warner Bros. and David E. Kelley's pilot episode, which saw "Friday Night Lights" actress Adrianne Palicki in the lead role of Diana Prince and her titular alter ego.

The new version of the programme would have seen the lead character as a high-flying businesswoman by day and a "butt-kicking Amazon" by night, with her adventures set to a contemporary soundtrack, but test audiences gave mixed feedback, leading the network to pass on the show.

According to Entertainment Weekly, other reasons for the show being passed included unhappiness about "Wonder Woman"'s outfit, which paid closer tribute to Greek mythology, rather than American patriotism.

As well as Adrianne, Elizabeth Hurley had been due to star in the programme.

The 45-year-old British actress revealed in March,...

When former Showtime president Bob Greenblatt became chairman and president of programming of NBC, it seemed highly likely things would improve when it came to that network's Glbt visibility. After all, having the first out man as a broadcast network president would seem to indicate a certain level of acceptance for gay content.

Those hopes look to have been fulfilled this week as NBC announced their fall pickups which include the dramas Smash and Playboy. Smash, starring Debra Messing, is set in the Broadway world of New York, and includes the gay character of Tom (Christian Borle). Based on sides for the pilot, Tom is out and proud, and we even see him in bed with another man (who may or may not be bisexual). All in all, the show appears to have a great deal of promise and Tom looks set to get a decent amount of screentime.

Even more promising is Playboy,...

NBC has added three other series to its pickup list for the 2011-2012 season. After giving a green light to "Smash", "Prime Suspect", "Whitney" and "Up All Night", the network now orders "The Playboy Club", "Awake" and "Grimm".

"Playboy" is a drama set in the 1960s when crooners, mob bosses, politicians and Chicago's elite play. The story revolves around a group of women working as Playboy bunnies and a man (Eddie Cibrian) who is described as "the ultimate playboy".

Being dubbed "Inception" for TV, "Awake" follows the simultaneous and parallel lives of a detective who cannot let go of any aspect of his fractured family after a horrible car accident. Jason Isaacs takes the lead role with Cherry Jones and Wilmer Valderrama co-starring.

As for "Grimm", the dark but fantastical cop drama is set in a world in which Brothers Grimm fairy tales exist. David Giuntoli, Bitsie Tulloch and Kate Burton...

NBC is yet to make their "sorry, you have not been picked up" calls, but the fate of several high-profile projects has already been sealed. David E. Kelley's reboot of Wonder Woman is not going forward. Also not getting a pickup is the Don Johnson hairdresser drama A Mann's World, written and directed by Michael Patrick King. And an order for Stephen Gaghan's sprawling drama Metro is considered extremely unlikely too. This may not be the end of the road for A Mann's World, a well-received pilot, mostly for King's direction and Johnson's on-screen presence. I hear it will probably be shopped to cable networks, which makes sense as many who have seen the pilot say it has cable sensibility.

Update: Word is that NBC may be done with its drama pickups, though there is no official confirmation on that and no calls have been made yet to the producers of the hourlong pilots that have not gotten a pickup yet, including Stephen Gaghan's Metro, David E. Kelley's Wonder Woman and Michael Patrick King's A Mann's World. Previous: NBC just kicked off its second day of pickups with orders to Kyle Killen's Inception-style Awake (form. Rem) and Chad Hodge's 1960s The Playboy Club. Both hail from 20th Century Fox TV (Playboy in a co-production with Imagine TV) and have been widely expected to get the nod. Playboy has already zeroed in on a showrunner, Shark creator Ian Biederman. NBC seems to be going studio by studio, starting off with Ums' Whitney, Up All Night, Prime Suspect and Smash yesterday, now adding 20th TV's Awake and Playboy.

Filed under: TV News

Good news for fans of family drama: NBC has renewed 'Parenthood' for a third season. The network has also given a second season to David E. Kelley's 'Harry's Law.'

According to Entertainment Weekly, Kelley's 'Wonder Woman' reboot starring Adrianne Palicki will not be making it to series.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, NBC has ordered 'Awake,' the 'Inception'-style thriller from Kyle Killen, 'The Playboy Club' and 'Grimm' to series.

'The Playboy Club' is a period drama set in a Playboy club in 1960s Chicago. 'Grimm,' a police drama, is set in a world where fairy tales exist.

Don Johnson's return to network TV, 'Mann's World,' has also been passed on by NBC. Deadline reports it may be shopped to a cable channel.

 

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Miami Vice has nothing on the cast of characters that pop up in Don Johnson's new television pilot, A Mann's World. Not only did writer, director and producer Michael Patrick King (yes, of Sex and the City fame) reportedly cast "Leave Britney Alone" internet sensation Chris Crocker in the series, but fans of RuPaul's Drag Race may recognize a certain cross-dressing diva in the mix, too… Yes, folks, Drag Race sensation Shangela is a series regular, too. If the pilot gets picked up, that is. The drama, which also stars Ellen Barkin and Sex and the City alum Mario Cantone, centers on a hairstylist (Johnson) and his Beverly Hills salon. "I play Snip," Shangela (real...

Here's last week's caption pic winner. This week's caption pic is at the bottom of the page.

Thanks to everyone for participating! The winner is ...

"Introducing the Real Housewives of Lascaux."

Thanks to Bigdillo for this week's winning caption.

Happy 52nd Birthday to David Hyde Pierce (here with partner Brian Hargrove at the opening of How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying).

Are Ricky martin and Carlos Gonzalez getting married? If so, can I be the ring bearer? Robyn has always felt like an outsider, and she thinks that's part of the reason why she has such a loyal gay following; "I think the gay community just gets me, and I'm very lucky to have that audience — it's a very loyal and dedicated audience." Below you can see the latest episode of the web series Then We Got Help, featuring Ae favorite Nicholas Rodriguez as Danny, who in workout...

A very happy birthday to Celine Dion, who turns 43 today. I adore Celine, even though she basically stole the career of my 2nd all-time favorite singer Laura Branigan. Okay, time to name your top five Celine songs! Here are mine: 5. "Beauty and the Beast;" 4. "Where Does My Heart Beat Now;" 3. "My Heart Will Go On;" 2. "Nothing Broken But My Heart," and my favorite is the gloriously over-the-top Jim Steinman epic "It's All Coming Back To Me Now." But then, all Jim Steinman songs are gloriously over-the-top (see Bonnie Tyler, Meatloaf). Here's a refresher, with Celine pining for her hot, dead, cool rider.

The 2011 NewNowNext Awards airs on Logo (our parent company) at 10Pm Et on Monday, April 11th, and they've just announced that the host will be ... James Van Der Beek! Because ... well, I don't know why, but there it is. That much-celebrated U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services "hold...

Pity the Hollywood writer who sets his or her movie or television series in the world of hair salons. If the show doesn't include any gay or bisexual characters, gay viewers are likely to cry foul and accuse him/her of not being gay-inclusive. But if a gay character is included and is nothing but the typical cliched hair stylist we've seen so many times before, the writers are just as likely to be criticized. And rightly so.

That's the dilemma faced by out writer Michael Patrick King of Sex and the City fame in his new NBC pilot A Mann's World. Starring Don Johnson as Allan Mann and Taylor Kinney as the young, hotshot sylist France, A Mann's World is about the "complicated life of Allan Mann, a celebrity hair stylist in glamorous Los Angeles."

Don Johnson, Taylor Kinney, Mario Cantone

In the pilot script read by AfterElton.com,...

Part of a series that takes an analytical look at the current broadcast pilot season and some of its trends and heroes. Maybe it's the Tom Selleck/Kathy Bates effect, but the broadcast networks seem more open than ever to shows fronted by older leads this pilot season. Until recently, actors in their 60s and late 50s were relegated to supporting parts as parents or grandparents of TV shows' main characters. Now they're the main attraction. Michael Patrick King's NBC drama pilot A Mann's World stars 62-year-old Don Johnson. CBS' pilot The Doctor is toplined by 61-year-old Christine Lahti. ABC has an untitled comedy pilot written for and starring 57-year-old Tim Allen. And ABC's drama pilot Grace is headlined by 55-year-old Eric Roberts. The trend started last year with several pilots going older with their leads than the characters had been originally written. Blue Bloods (then Reagan's Law) whose...

From Celebrity Rehab stars to pilot leads -- that's the career trajectory for Eric Roberts and Tom Sizemore, who landed major roles on pilots this season: Roberts is the star of ABC's dance drama Grace, and Sizemore co-stars opposite Ethan Hawke in Fox's Exit Strategy. (Sizemore was a cast member of the third season of VH1's Celebrity Rehab in 2009; Roberts was on the reality series last year.) Add to them Don Johnson, star of Michael Patrick King's NBC pilot A Mann's World, who also has a history of substance abuse and brushes with the law. In a pilot season overshadowed by the spectacle of current TV bad boy Charlie Sheen, it is nice to see the bad boys of yesteryear getting redemption and another chance at stardom. Let's hope Sheen will get that too in a pilot season a decade from now ...

Ellen Barkin has reportedly landed a role in NBC's drama A Mann's World. The pilot, which has been penned by Sex And The City scribe Michael Patrick King, stars Don Johnson as an ageing Beverley Hills hairdresser called Allan Mann who is determined to stay relevant. Deadline says that Barkin has now signed up to play Allan's ex-wife and the mother of his children. The character works as Allan's financial (more)...

ABC's "No Ordinary Family" has been in the ratings danger zone for some time now. The show's prognosis didn't get any better Thursday (March 10) with the news that one of its stars has taken a role in a pilot.

Michael Chiklis has taken the title role in CBS' comedy project "Vince Uncensored," Deadline reports. It's in second position to "Nof," which Chiklis also co-executive produces, but the fact that CBS has also signed him to a development deal is an additional dark cloud. "No Ordinary Family" is averaging a tepid 6.8 million viewers and 2.0 rating among adults 18-49 this season.

"Vince Uncensored" is about a man (Chiklis) who has a medical scare and decides to be more honest in his life, even if it hurts. Conan O'Brien is one of the pilot's exec producers; "Cheers" and "Boston Legal" veteran Phoef Sutton created it.

Some other notable castings, per Deadline:

- Donal Logue,...

Ellen Barkin has joined NBC's pilot Mann's World. The series revolves around a straight, aging hairdresser forced to contend with the younger, hipper Los Angeles crowd.

Ellen Barkin will play the funny, forgiving ex-wife of title character Allan Mann, played by Don Johnson. Together, this separated couple have three children and a beauty empire, from which Barkin has removed herself on a day-to-day basis. Now, she simply serves as the company's financial and emotional advisor.

Mann's World was created by Michael Patrick King, and is aiming to make it onto NBC's 2011 fall schedule.

In her first series gig, Ellen Barkin is set to co-star opposite Don Johnson in Michael Patrick King's drama pilot A Mann's World. The Warner Bros. TV-produced project stars Don Johnson as Allan Mann, a fiftysomething handsome and sexy straight Beverly Hills hairdresser struggling to stay young and relevant in a place where looks are everything. Barkin will play Allan's forgiving, funny ex-wife and the mother of their three children. She and Allen built his beauty empire together before she removed herself from the day-to-day operation and now serves as his financial and, occasionally, emotional adviser. On TV, Barkin has done several movies, winning an Emmy for one of them, 1997's When Women Had Wings.

Mario Cantone has signed up for a role in NBC's pilot A Mann's World. The project stars Don Johnson as Allan Mann, an ageing Beverly Hills hairdresser who is determined to stay relevant. Deadline says that Cantone has now signed up to play Allan's salon manager. His character is described as an opinionated gay man who looks after the salon's employees and manages (more)...

Mario Cantone has joined the NBC drama A Mann's World from Warner Bros. TV.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, A Mann's World centers on a fiftysomething Beverly Hills hairdresser and salon owner (Don Johnson) struggling to remain relevant in a world all about looks.

Mario Cantone will play the part of Nicky. He will join Don Johnson as well as Taylor Kinney, Kelly Hu, Sandra Vergara, Caitlin Crosby, Amanda Warren and Jr Bourne.

Michael Patrick King will write, direct and executive produce.

Former Sex and the City showrunner Michael Patrick King is bringing an alum from the hit HBO series to his new project, NBC's drama pilot A Mann's World. Mario Cantone, who played blunt Sicilian-American gay event planner Anthony Marantino in the Sex and the City series and two movies, has been added to the cast of A Mann's World, which stars Don Johnson as Allan Mann, a 50something handsome and sexy straight Beverly Hills hairdresser who is struggling to stay young and relevant in a place where looks are everything. Gersh-repped Cantone will play Allan's salon manager, an opinionated, single gay man who handles all the moment-to-moment decisions about running the salon and acts as the "mother" to the salon work family. Also cast in the pilot is Jesse Jones, repped by the Gage Group and Untitled, who will play Allan's son. The Social Network and The Pacific co-star Joe Mazzello...

The latest round of pilot casting includes two leads in a J.J. Abrams-produced pilot, a growing "Battlestar Galactica" reunion on NBC's "17th Precinct" and more. The rundown:

"Person of Interest," the Abrams-produced drama at CBS, has found its leads. James Caviezel (last seen on AMC's "The Prisoner") will play a presumed-dead former CIA agent who works for a billionaire (the previously cast Michael Emerson) as a one-man police force, and Taraji P. Henson ("Boston Legal," "The Karate Kid") will play a detective who gets tied up in their crusade. [Hollywood Reporter/Vulture]

A third "Battlestar Galactica" regular has joined "BSG" exec producer Ron Moore's "17th Precinct." Tricia Helfer will play a necromancer/coroner in the cop show/fantasy hybrid; she joins Jamie Bamber and James Callis on the show. [Deadline]

The CW's zombie drama "Awakening" has cast Lucy Griffiths (BBC America's "Robin Hood") as one of its leads. The show centers...

CBS' comedy pilot from Jeff and Jackie Filgo has won the Becki Newton sweepstakes. With several pilots vying for the former Ugly Betty co-star, Newton picked the CBS family comedy (formerly Homegrown) as her starring vehicle this pilot season. The pilot is formally in second position to Newton's NBC series Love Bites, which is yet to be scheduled and has little chance of returning for a second season. The untitled Filgos project centers on a blue-collar guy who wrestles with how to parent his unmarried grown daughter (Newton) and her 12-year-old son while sharing a house with them as well as his wife and his recently widowed mother. Newton is with Gersh. In other pilot castings, singer-songwriter-actress Caitlin Crosby has joined NBC's drama A Mann's World, starring Don Johnson as a fiftysomething Beverly Hills hairdresser. Crosby, repped by Paradigm and John Carrabino, will play the genius hair colorist at the salon.

Filed under: TV News

The 'Wonder Woman' cast has added yet another awesome actor to its ranks: Carey Elwes, otherwise known as Westley from 'The Princess Bride.'

He'll play Henry Detmer, the acting CEO of Themyscira Industries and an uncle-like figure to Adrianne Palicki's Diana Prince who could potentially turn into a love interest, according to Deadline.

Meanwhile, TV Line reports that Becki Newton, one of pilot season's most sought-after stars, has signed on for the Fox comedy pilot formerly known as 'Home Grown.' The casting is in second position to her as-yet-unaired NBC series, 'Love Bites.'

Jim Cavizel, also known as Mel Gibson's Jesus in 'The Passion of the Christ,' has booked the leading role in the J.J. Abrams/Jonah Nolan pilot 'Person of Interest,' according to Vulture. He joins the already-cast Taraji P. Henson and Michael Emerson.

Three more stars have signed up for roles in NBC's pilot A Mann's World. The comedy stars Don Johnson as Allan Mann, an ageing Beverly Hills hairdresser who is determined to stay relevant. According to Deadline, Kelly Hu, Sandra Vergara and Jr Bourne have all now joined the project. Hu, who played Pearl in The Vampire Diaries, will play Allan's second wife and the mother of his daughter. Her character (more)...

Photo by Kristin Dos Santos via Wikimedia Commons 

It's pilot season and Hollywood is quickly attaching some big names to hopeful TV projects for next season. We are crossing our fingers that some of our favorites stars will be back on the small screen by year's end. Here's a rundown of the shows we are rooting for.

Kiefer Sutherland in Touch (Fox)

With 24 firmly behind him and a stint on Broadway in Jason Miller's That Championship Season wrapping up, Kiefer has signed on to star in a new Fox pilot. Tim Kring, the creator of Heroes, is behind the project about an autistic kid who can predict the future. Kiefer plays his dad in the sci-fi thriller that has big promise.

Don Johnson in A Mann's World (NBC)

Miami Vice's Don Johnson is trying his hand at TV again by playing a Warren Beatty-like hairdresser. The Beverly...

Filed under: TV News

'Miami Vice' veteran Don Johnson is eying a return to TV with a role in NBC's 'A Mann's World.'

According to TVLine, Johnson will play Allan Mann, a successful hair stylist who finds himself struggling to stay relevant in an industry that emphasizes youth.

The drama pilot comes from 'Sex and the City''s Michael Patrick King. 'The Vampire Diaries' star Taylor Kinney is also on board as the current "it boy" in the stylist world.

 

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Don Johnson is set to return to series television with the upcoming dramedy A Mann's World for NBC. Michael Patrick King is the creator behind this new project, which is being compared to the 1975 comedy Shampoo, which starred Warren Beatty.

A Mann's World will follow a fifty-year-old straight hairdresser in Beverly Hills who finds himself struggling to remain reverent amongst his younger peers. In an attempt to keep his salon going, he purchases the day spa next door.

A Mann's World is currently being targeted for a fall debut. The pilot will shoot sometime in the near future.

Former Miami Vice star Don Johnson is returning to NBC. After lengthy negotiations, Johnson just closed a deal to star in the network's drama pilot from Michael Patrick King A Mann's World. In the vein of Shampoo, the project, from Warner Bros. TV, centers on Allan Mann (Johnson), a 50something handsome and sexy straight Beverly Hills hairdresser who is struggling to stay young and relevant in a place where looks are everything. Not  ready to give up his passion for what he does, he rolls the dice and risks it all to expand his beauty empire by purchasing the building next door to his salon to transform into a day spa. Johnson was the an early choice for the role and the first to get an offer for it. Nash Bridges alum Johnson's most recent regular TV gig was on the WB series Just Legal. Last year, the actor, repped by Gersh and Untitled,...

In a series of stories, I'll take an analytical look at the current broadcast pilot season and some of its trends and heroes. In what was probably the last big pilot director signing this season, Jaume Collet-Sera yesterday closed a deal to direct ABC's The River hours before the premiere of his new movie, the Liam Neeson starrer Unknown. It was a fitting end to a pilot director hiring season that was dominated by feature helmers. Among those signed for pilots are Jonathan Demme (CBS' untitled Susannah Grant), Shawn Levy (Fox's Comedy Album), Phillip Noyce (ABC's Revenge), Antoine Fuqua (Fox's Exit Strategy), James Mangold (CBS' Rookies) Michael Apted (ABC's Hallelujah), Eclipse director David Slade (NBC's Rem), The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo director Niels Arden Oplev (CBS' Redlich/Bellucci), Mark Romanek (Fox's Locke & Key) and Easy A helmer Will Gluck (Fox's Iceland). Two filmmakers, Stephen Gaghan and Michael Patrick King,...

Taylor Kinney has reportedly landed a role in a new NBC pilot. Deadline says that the actor, who recently played Mason in The Vampire Diaries, has signed up to appear in A Mann's World. The project has been created by Sex And The City and Will & Grace producer Michael Patrick King and focuses on a Beverly Hills hairdresser in his 50s who is trying (more)...

Taylor Kinney, best known for his role as werewolf Mason Lockwood on Vampire Diaries, has become the first actor cast in Michael Patrick King's drama pilot for NBC A Mann's World. In the vein of Shampoo, the project centers on a straight Beverly Hills hairdresser in his 50s who is struggling to stay young and relevant in a place where looks are everything. Kinney, repped by Gersh and Principal Entertainment, will play the current "it" stylist at the spa, a smokin' hot guy who is constantly pursued by beautiful women and whose goal is to have his own salon one day. Chris Butler and Ryan Doom have been added to TBS' pilot Hound Dogs. The project centers on minor league team the Nashville Hound Dogs and its recovering gambling addict general manager (Tom Verica) as they try to handle life’s ups and downs. Butler will play a longtime...

The pilot pickup season is just starting in earnest, but we already have an unusually large number of creators with multiple pilot orders. Peter Tolan, Whitney Cummings, Michael Patrick King and the duo of Andrew Reich and Ted Cohen have each received two pickups. Tolan wrote and is executive producing Fox's comedy The Council of Dads and NBC's Brave New World, Cummings  wrote, executive produces and stars in an untitled comedy pilot for NBC about a young couple and co-wrote/executive produces the CBS comedy pilot Two Broke Girls with King. King also has NBC drama pilot A Mann's World, on which he is the writer-executive producer. Reich and Cohen wrote and are executive producing two ABC comedy pilots, Work It and Smothered. Besides evoking an automatic reaction of "Come on, spread the wealth" from other writers who have projects in contention, the embarrassment of riches for the in-demand creators...