Sep 25 2010 02:50 PM ET

Fall 2010 ratings: 'Blue Bloods' and Tom Selleck, 'CSI: NY' and Sela Ward score big for CBS

Categories: News, TV Ratings

csi-ny-sela-wardImage Credit: Cliff Lipson/CBSThe new drama Blue Bloods, which marked the return of Tom Selleck to prime time,  was a hit for CBS on an otherwise humdrum night for broadcast television. The cop drama attracted 12.8 million viewers and posted a 2.2 rating/7 share in adults 18-49 – a 22% increase versus what Numb3rs did last year. The drama also rocked its 10 p.m. time slot in the key demographic, along with posting wins among adults 25-54 and women 18-49.

Coupled with an impressive performance by the return of CSI: New York (10.27 million viewers) – which featured new castmember Sela Ward – CBS easily won the night in viewers (9.7 million) and adults 18-49. Medium also returned to the network at 8 but was down 39% among adults 18-49 compared to what The Ghost Whisperer was doing in the time slot a year ago. The Patricia Arquette series only averaged 6.1 million.

NBC aired a two-hour Dateline followed by the premiere of Outlaw, the Jimmy Smits starrer that only averaged 4.98 million. Still, NBC came in second in viewers (6.47 million) and adults 18-49 for the night.

The CW rolled out a new season of Smallville, which rocked its timeslot among teens and men 18-49 and averaged 2.9 million viewers. It scored the CW’s best performance in the Friday slot in two years among viewers and adults 18-49. Supernatural also staged a return, which also won its slot among teens and averaged 2.78 million viewers.

Fox aired a repeat of Human Target and an original of The Good Guys, which averaged 2.9 million. For the night, Fox finished in fourth place among viewers (3.0 million).

ABC repeated two of its comedies, The Whole Truth and an original 20/20. It finished the night in third place among viewers (3.98 million).

Sep 25 2010 01:28 PM ET

'Wall Street 2' trades up over other new releases on Friday

Categories: Box Office, News

Wall-Street-2-Shia-DouglasImage Credit: Barry WetcherMoviegoers are buying Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps this weekend. The Oliver Stone film revisiting Gordon Gekko and his relationship with cash is scoring with audiences, grossing around $7 million on Friday for what should be a first place finish in the low $20 million range. The lure of Michael Douglas and Shia LaBeouf seems to be drawing in audiences young and old.

The same can not be said for this frame’s other releases. Zack Snyder’s spooky owl movie Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole earned less than $5 million on Friday for a weekend take that may only reach $17 million. It will be competing with The Town for second place. Ben Affleck’s Boston-based caper flick is holding in remarkably well, also grossing around $5 million on Friday for what could be another $17 million for the movie that opened last weekend to $24 million.

Emma Stone’s Easy A has also held remarkably well. The film dropped in the 40 percent range its second Friday in theaters for just under $4 million. That number could translate into another $10 million for the movie that cost less than that to make. And fifth place will likely go to the third new release of the weekend, You Again starring Kristen Bell, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Sigourney Weaver. The PG-13 rated comedy earned around $3 million on Friday night for a weekend that should add up to $8 million.

Come back tomorrow for full results.

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Sep 25 2010 09:10 AM ET

Patrick Wilson, Patton Oswalt to join Charlize Theron in Jason Reitman's next movie

Categories: Casting, Deals, Movie Biz, News

Jason Reitman (Juno, Up in the Air) is once again assembling an interesting mix of actors for his next movie. For the director  is working to get Patrick Wilson to play the male lead opposite Charlize Theron for Young Adult. No deal is yet in place but negotiations are under way. The film, from Juno screenwriter Diablo Cody, centers on a thirty-something, divorced young adult fiction writer who returns to her hometown to chase the ex-boyfriend that got away. Only problem? He’s married with a child. Wilson would of course play said ex-boyfriend.

Probably best known for his roles in Todd Field’s Little Children and Zach Snyder’s Watchmen, Wilson was just in The A-Team and can next be seen in Morning Glory, the upcoming news comedy which stars Harrison Ford and Rachel McAdams. Comedian Patton Oswalt is also looking to join the group, as a self-hating man who was in love with Theron’s character in high school.

Young Adult is being produced by the Juno team of Mandate Pictures and Mr. Mudd Productions. Paramount Pictures is negotiating to distribute the film. They are the studio behind  Reitman’s 2009 film Up in the Air. Production is set to begin in this fall.

Sep 24 2010 12:57 PM ET

Fall 2010 ratings: 'Big Bang Theory' blasts off in new timeslot, 'The Apprentice' sinks to a new low

insider-ratingsImage Credit: Kevin T. Gilbert/NBC; Bob D'Amico/ABC; Monty Brinton/CBSAll that promotion about Big Bang Theory’s big move to Thursdays paid off for CBS: The comedy posted a 37 percent increase among adults 18-49 last night versus the debut of the first half of Survivor: Samoa last September and dominated in all of the major demographics. Buoyed by the Emmy win for star Jim Parsons last month, the sitcom easily won its timeslot at 8 p.m. and averaged a stunning 13.95 million viewers opposite heavy competition from the other broadcast networks.

The rest of CBS’ lineup faired equally as well. The debut of $#*! My Dad Says posted a slight gain over Samoa among 18-49 and averaged 12.4 million viewers. It also won its timeslot in viewers and key demographics. And the Justin Bieber-boosted premiere of CSI attracted the biggest audience at 9 p.m. with 14.5 million and even posted a rare win among female teens. With The Mentalist averaging 15.25 million viewers at 10, CBS easily won the night in viewers (14.3 million) and adults 18-49. (Read full post)

Sep 24 2010 12:07 PM ET

Jeff Zucker to leave post as chief of NBC/Universal

Categories: News, TV Biz

Jeff-ZuckerImage Credit: Ben Hider/Getty ImagesIn what has been predicted for months, Jeff Zucker announced his decision to leave NBC/Universal once the takeover by Comcast is complete. In an email to staff this morning, Zucker acknowledged that “it has not been an easy or a simple decision” to leave the media company, but ”it is clear to me that this is the right decision for me and for the company.”

“Comcast will be a great new steward, just as GE has been, and they deserve the chance to implement their own vision,” Zucker wrote. “I am proud that they will inherit a company in very good shape, with almost every one of our divisions enjoying their best year ever.”

Zucker’s job has been in question ever since Comcast agreed to purchase the media company back in December (the deal is expected to close at the end of the year). Though Zucker’s time at NBC was highlighted by many victories – like turning The Today Show into a powerful cash cow, building the company’s cable nets like Bravo, USA, Oxygen and CNBC, and creating the now heavily-used Hulu - it was also overshadowed by colossal failures, like moving Jay Leno to prime time and paying Conan O’Brien some $40 million to leave NBC. He also was responsible for some major staffing blunders, like pushing out Kevin Reilly – who’s now running Fox and is responsible for Glee, the highest-rated show on TV right now among adults 18-49 – and hiring the inexperienced Ben Silverman to run the network. The former agent’s tenure didn’t even last two years at NBC.

Though the Peacock is still home to some of the most critically-lauded shows on TV, its been years since the network enjoyed the kind of success it once had during those heady Must See TV days – a weakness that was often attributed to Zucker’s reign as entertainment president and later as the company’s CEO.  NBC is currently in fourth place among adults 18-49 (2.7 rating/7 share) and total viewers (7.5 million).

In his email to staff, Zucker appeared particularly conflicted about leaving “the only place I have ever worked.” ”I have spent my entire adult life here, more than 24 years. The only professional thing I have ever known. I met my wife here, enjoyed the birth of our four children in that time, worked in almost every division of the company, and forged relationships both professional and personal that will last a lifetime.

“I don’t know yet what my future will bring … I haven’t even begun to think about the next chapter…I love NBC Universal and always will.”

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Sep 23 2010 07:03 PM ET

'Spider-Man' female leads: they're getting closer

Categories: Casting, Movie Biz, News

Some new names are popping up surrounding the casting of Spider-Man’s love interest in the reboot of the webbed superhero starring Andrew Garfield. Sony and director Marc Webb (500 Days of Summer) continue to test actresses, but, as it turns out, it’s not for one female lead but two. So attention all you comic book fans out there: It looks like this Spider-Man, which is set in high school, will feature both of Spidey’s most prominent love interests, the red-headed Mary Jane Watson, played in the last three movies by Kirsten Dunst, and blonde Gwen Stacy, which Bryce Dallas Howard played in Spider-Man 3, say sources close to the production.

As such, the studio is casting a rather wide net. It flew Mia Wasikowska, best known as Alice from Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland, in from New York to meet with Webb and Garfield. While, most recently, Easy A’s Emma Stone read with Garfield for the role.

The studio is being very mum as to who could possibly be the front runners for the two parts and declined to comment for this story. Other names are also said to be circling the high-profile project. Yet it’s easy to imagine that the two roles could go to both Stone and Wasikowska. The red-headed Stone has starred in four movies for the studio and is said to have a great relationship with Sony head Amy Pascal. Stone has come on strong ever since last year’s Zombieland and only solidified her place as a go-to young actress with the success of Easy A, which bowed last weekend to just under $18 million. Stone is currently filming The Help for DreamWorks, where she stars as the lead character Skeeter Phelan in the period piece based on Kathryn Stockett’s best-selling novel.

I’m told that Wasikowska’s interest in the film has been more ambivalent. While she was an integral part to the huge 3-D spectacle that was Alice in Wonderland, the Australian actress might be more rooted in indie films. She’s recently received kudos for her part in Lisa Cholodenko’s The Kids are All Right and also wrapped Jane Eyre for Focus Features and BBC Films. It’s not clear who else the studio is interested in. Lily Collins, the daughter in The Blind Side is said to have meet with the studio, too.

This rebooted Spider-Man is supposed to begin filming by the end of the year and is already scheduled for release in Summer 2012.

Sep 23 2010 05:59 PM ET

Chloë Moretz to play Emily the Strange

Categories: Casting, Deals, Movie Biz, News

In honor of Emily the Strange’s 17th 13th birthday, the beloved cartoon character is getting a physical manifestation in young actress Chloë Moretz. The 13-year old actress will play Emily the Strange for Universal Pictures and Dark Horse Comics. Rob Reger created Emily the Strange in 1993. Since then, the character has been licensed and distributed into 35 countries around the world.

Said Reger of Moretz, “When I first met Chloë, I knew I found my Emily. She really identifies and understands the character, and has what it takes to bring her to life.”

Sep 23 2010 05:21 PM ET

Lifetime renews 'Army Wives' and 'Drop Dead Diva'

Categories: News, TV Biz, Television

Lifetime announced that it picked up a fifth season of Army Wives and a third of Drop Dead Diva to premiere in 2011. Each season runs for 13 episodes. “Army Wives and Drop Dead Diva have lead Lifetime’s charge in scripted programming and are key components to our success,” said Nancy Dubuc, President and General Manager of Lifetime Networks, in a statement. “We are so happy with these two special programs and are excited to pick them up for new seasons, which allows us to launch our next generation of scripted series.”

Lifetime says Wives is its most successful series in the network’s 26-year history. The drama’s fourth season averaged 3.2 million total viewers, and the season 4 finale on Aug. 22 was the program’s most watched episode of the year across all demographics, including viewers, adults 25-54, and women 18-49.

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Sep 23 2010 04:51 PM ET

Box office preview: 'Legend of the Guardians' fights 'Wall Street' for top slot

Categories: Box Office, Movie Biz, News

legendof-the-guardiansImage Credit: Warner BrosIt’s not every weekend that we get to see owls battling investment bankers for our movie-going dollars. But this frame, Zack Snyder’s longest-titled film ever, Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole, takes on an equally verbose film, Oliver Stone’s Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps. The two couldn’t be reaching for more different audiences (owls: families; Wall Street: grown-ups), but with the family audience not having a film to call their own in a long while (and, no, we’re not going to count the ho-hum Alpha and Omega), Guardians could win by default. Wall Street has the unfortunate distinction of being smack in the middle of The Town and The Social Network, two films that seem much more anticipated than Stone’s sequel to the iconic “Greed is Good” film of the ’80s. Read on for my predictions.

1. Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole: $22 million

Really? Warring Owls? At first glance this premise doesn’t seem to be the subject matter blockbusters are built on. But it turns out the film comes from a series of best-selling children’s books, and reviews are falling all over the incredible 3-D effects in the film. Plus, you’ve got Zack Snyder on board, the man responsible for the visual stylings of both 300 and The Watchmen. Still, the film is said to be quite violent for the under-eight set, a factor that could prove challenging with concerned parents. Yet, with very little out there for families to see, Guardians could win the frame. (Read full post)

Sep 23 2010 02:30 PM ET

Kimberly Peirce to direct 'Wicked Lovely' for Universal Pictures

Categories: Deals, Movie Biz, News

Forget vampires, how about faeries? And, no, I’m not talking about True Blood. Universal Pictures announced today that it’s hired Kimberly Peirce, the director behind Boys Don’t Cry and Stop-Loss, to direct Wicked Lovely, the adaptation of the first book in the best-selling young adult fantasy series by Melissa Marr. Universal Pictures is producing the film with Vince Vaughn’s Wild West Picture Show Productions.

The film centers on a teenage girl, Aislinn, who has seen dangerous faeries her entire life and must go against everything she was taught to confront a world she was raised to fear. Caroline Thompson (Corpse Bride) is adapting the novel for the big screen. The book debuted in 2007 and remained on the New York Times bestseller list for ll weeks. Marr followed it up with the companion novels Ink Exchange in 2008 and Fragile Eternity in 2009. The fourth book in the series Radiant Shadows will debut this year.

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