Monday, March 25, 2013

TV News - 'Craig Robinson Comedy,' 'Rottenberg & Zuritsky Comedy,' 'Kirstie's New Show,' 'NCIS,' 'Dads,' 'Web Therapy,' 'Cougar Town,' 'Keep Calm & Karey On,' 'Rita,' 'Ironside,' 'Bloodline' & 'Holding Patterns'

        Monday, March 25 - Emmy winner Jean Smart has joined the cast of the untitled NBC comedy pilot from Greg Daniels and Owen Ellickson and starring Craig Robinson. She will play Jeannette, an erratic, stressed-out junior high principal who's constantly in damage control mode. She replaces Jane Adams who exited the project after the first table read last week.


Smash star Debra Messing is set to topline the untitled CBS comedy pilot from Julie Rottenberg and Elisa Zuritsky. The project centers on 40-year-old Ella (Messing) who, in order to successfully navigate through the demanding life of being a mother of three, a lover, a friend and a career woman, constantly lies her way out of and into situations. Additionally, she will serve as a co-executive producer on the project. Her casting on the potential series is formally in second position to NBC's Smash.

Xosha Roquemore will recur throughout the first season of the upcoming new TV Land comedy series Kirstie's New Show starring Kirstie Alley and Rhea Perlman. She will reprise her role of Tanya - which she played as a guest star in the pilot episode - for at least six of the twelve first season episodes. Tanya is the personal chef to Alley's Madison "Maddie" Banks.

Marina Sirtis (Star Trek: The Next Generation) will guest on CBS' NCIS as the new Mossad director replacing Ziva's father Eli David (Michael Nouri) whose character's death was a pivotal moment for this season. She will first appear in an early April episode.

Seth Green (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Family Guy) has landed the co-leading role on the FOX straight-to-series comedy Dads from Alec Sulkin, Wellesley Wild and Seth MacFarlane. The project centers around two successful video game entrepreneurs, Warner (Thomas Dewey) and Eli (Green), who find their lives turned upside-down when their nightmare fathers (Peter Riegert, Martin Mull) unexpectedly move in with them. Additionally, Erin Pineda has been cast as Camilla, Warner's wife and mother of their two children.

Showtime's Web Therapy will return for its ten-episode third season on Monday, July 22 at 11/10c. Guest stars for the upcoming season of the Lisa Kudrow-starrer include Steve Carell, Billy Crystal, Chelsea Handler, Megan Mullally, Sara Gilbert, Nina Garcia, Meg Ryan, Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Matt LeBlanc. Additionally, actors reprising their roles from the first two seasons include Victor Garber, Michael McDonald, Lily Tomlin, Dan Bucatinsky, Alan Cumming, Jennifer Elise Cox, Julie Claire and Tim Bagley.

TBS has renewed Cougar Town for a 13 episode fifth season set to air in 2014. "Cougar Town has been everything we hoped it would be: a smart, big-hearted, laugh-out-loud comedy that shines a bright light on the TBS brand," said Michael Wright, president, head of programming for TBS, TNT and Turner Classic Movies.

Flight of the Conchords vet Rhys Darby has been cast on the ABC comedy pilot Keep Calm & Karey On from Andrea Abbate and starring Kelly Preston. He will play Karey's (Preston) husband.

Rhys Wakefield has joined the cast of the Bravo drama pilot Rita starring Anna Gunn. He will play Rita's (Gunn) oldest son who has a close but complex relationship with his mother.

Kenneth Choi (Sons of Anarchy, 24) has been added to the cast of the NBC drama pilot Ironside from Mike Caleo and starring Blair Underwood. He will play Captain Ed Rollins, Ironside's (Underwood) supervisor. Despite their push/pull relationship, Ed and Ironside have a tremendous amount of respect and admiration for each other.

Tzi Ma (24) will appear on the NBC drama pilot Bloodline from David Graziano and starring Skyler Samuels. He will play Charles Hwang, Bird's (Samuels) trainer and mentor.

Nelson Franklin (New Girl, Veep) has been cast on the NBC comedy pilot Holding Patterns starring Humphrey Ker and Chyler Leigh. He will play Chad, Griffin's (Ker) and Leah's (Leigh) arrogant, misogynistic friend, now a successful chick-lit author who returns home for the wedding. He replaces Robert Buckley who was originally cast in the role but exited after the first table read.