Purcell gets 'Break' in Fox pilot
Dominic Purcell has been tapped to star in the Fox drama pilot Prison Break. The pilot, to be directed by Brett Ratner, centers on an engineer (Wentworth Miller) who inserts himself into a prison he designed to help his brother (Purcell), a death row inmate who insists he is innocent, escape. Purcell, who has a talent deal with the network, recently landed a multiepisode arc on the freshman Fox series North Shore (HR 11/17). The actor, who toplined Fox's short-lived drama John Doe, next appears in the feature Blade: Trinity. He is repped by Endeavor and Untitled Entertainment.
- 12/2/2004
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Fox 'Doe' boy Purcell inks pact with net
Fox Broadcasting Co. has signed a talent holding deal with Dominic Purcell, star of its short-lived 2002 series John Doe. The deal will keep Purcell as a candidate for a Fox series role through next year. While Doe was not much of a primetime draw, the network is said to still have high hopes for its star, though there are no specific programs to which Purcell is pegged. "We had a great experience with him on John Doe," Fox executive vp casting Marcia Shulman said. "He's obviously a leading man and a really good actor." In Doe, Purcell played an uber-genius amnesiac who knew everything -- except for his own identity. The series, which lasted a full season Friday nights on Fox in 2002-03, was executive produced by Brandon Camp, Mimi Leder and Mike Thompson out of Regency TV. Purcell's film credits include Mission: Impossible 2, Equilibrium and the upcoming Blade: Trinity. Purcell is repped by Endeavor and Untitled Entertainment.
- 4/23/2004
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Leder one for Fox gumshoe pilot 'Zero'
Mimi Leder has signed on to direct and executive produce the Fox Broadcasting Co. drama pilot Johnny Zero, from John Wells Prods. and Warner Bros. TV. The project stars Franky G as an ex-con who is struggling to go straight while establishing himself as a private investigator. Leder most recently executive produced the Fox drama series John Doe, which aired in the 2002-03 season. She has also worked closely with John Wells over the years on NBC's ER, among other projects. Among Leder's recent feature directorial credits are 1999's Sentimental Journey and 2000's Pay It Forward. She has two upcoming projects in the works, Smoke & Mirrors and Void Moon. Leder is repped by CAA.
- 2/26/2004
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Col makes call for '911' script
Columbia Pictures has phoned in a mid-six against seven figure sum for Brandon Camp and Mike Thompson's script, tentatively titled 911, for Mark Gordon to produce. The project, which piqued the interest of bidding studios New Line Cinema and Warner Bros. Pictures, is a thriller about a female 911 operator who becomes convinced that her dead sister is trying to warn her of yet-to-be committed murders via cryptic emergency calls. No proof supports her claims and those around her begin to question her sanity. She then teams with a veteran homicide detective to find the killer before he hunts her down. Gordon will produce with Columbia creative executive Jonathan Kadin overseeing at the studio. Camp and Thompson will receive executive producer credit. "I have wanted to work with Camp and Thompson for a long time and they have written a great thriller that I believe is highly commercial and will have wide audience appeal," Gordon said. The writing duo, who spent some research time at 911 facilities, previously penned Dragonfly for Universal Pictures and Spyglass Entertainment, and executive produced John Doe for Fox. They are repped by Broder-Webb-Chervin-Silbermann and attorney Karl Austen.
- 9/22/2003
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Purcell makes 'Trinity' with Snipes 'Blade'
Dominic Purcell has signed on to play Wesley Snipes' vampire nemesis in New Line Cinema's upcoming Blade: Trinity. Purcell is the latest addition to a cast that includes Kris Kristofferson, Jessica Biel and Ryan Reynolds. The third installment of the Marvel Comics-based franchise is being written and directed by David Goyer. Trinity is being produced by Goyer, Snipes, Lynn Harris and Peter Frankfurt. Emmerich and New Line production exec Cale Boyter are overseeing the project, with production scheduled to start this month in Vancouver. Purcell has appeared in such films as Mission: Impossible II and Equilibrium as well on the small screen in the Fox television series John Doe. Purcell is repped by Endeavor and Untitled Entertainment.
- 9/9/2003
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Murphy in development with UPN
Development executive Maggie Murphy is finalizing a deal to join UPN as senior vp drama development, sources said. Murphy is expected to start at the beginning of next month, overseeing all drama development at the Viacom-owned network and reporting to entertainment president Dawn Ostroff. She will replace Sonja Piper Dosti, who is leaving the network after one year on the job. Murphy will join UPN from Regency Television, where she had been since the company's inception in 1998, most recently as senior vp drama development. The projects developed under her watch include Fox's John Doe, CBS' Queens Supreme and the upcoming Fox series Wanderfalls. Before going to Regency TV, Murphy served as manager of creative affairs for David E. Kelley Prods., where she worked on Ally McBeal, The Practice, Chicago Hope and Picket Fences. Her resume also includes stints at 20th Century Fox TV and August Entertainment.
- 6/9/2003
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
'Fastlane,' 'John Doe' get Fox's approval
Fox Broadcasting Co. has made its first full-season pickups this fall, ordering nine additional episodes each of the new dramas Fastlane and John Doe. Warner Bros. TV's Fastlane got off to a slow start in the Wednesday 9 p.m. period. "We're so glad that our work is being appreciated by (the network) and that they're showing faith in the face of so-so ratings," said John McNamara, who is executive producing with McG and Daniel Rappaport. John Doe is produced by Regency TV, with Brandon Camp, Mimi Leder and Mike Thompson executive producing. No decision has been made yet on Joss Whedon's sci-fi series Firefly, which has been given an order for six additional scripts, and on the new sketch comedy Cedric the Entertainer Presents.
- 11/13/2002
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Net chiefs admit sked mistakes
NEW YORK -- Fox made a mistake in previewing several nights of its primetime schedule, only to interrupt its flow with postseason baseball, Fox Broadcasting entertainment president Gail Berman conceded Tuesday. Speaking at an International Radio & Television Society Foundation breakfast in New York with her fellow network chieftains, Berman said Fox will "re-examine how it will roll out" its schedule next year because this year's plan caused "disarray in terms of getting a toehold in those time periods." Fox delayed the debut of its Thursday and Sunday night lineups until after the World Series, but the network introduced some new shows last month, including the heavily promoted dramas Firefly (starring Nathan Fillion), Fastlane and John Doe, only to have to pre-empt them for baseball. In the mea culpa category, NBC entertainment president Jeff Zucker conceded a mistake on his part, saying the network should not have moved its movie franchise from Sunday to Saturday nights. "We made a mistake in not being more aggressive in going after Saturday night," he said. I regret it. The network execs said they have no intention of abandoning Saturdays, even though HUT (households using television) levels there are dismal. Films have proved to be poor ratings grabbers on network television as most people have already seen them in other windows. But Zucker and ABC entertainment president Susan Lyne said the networks paid dearly for their packages and have to play them somewhere.
- 10/30/2002
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
CBS draws most viewers Tuesday, ABC takes the demo race
ABC's new Tuesday lineup posted another nightly win among adults 18-49, while CBS continued its rein on the night in total viewers. At 8 p.m., 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter (12.8 million viewers, 4.7 rating/14 share among adults 18-49) cooled off from previous weeks, but still won the half-hour in adults 18-49, while passing the total viewers baton this week to CBS' veteran military drama JAG (14.9 million, 3.3/9 from 8-9 p.m.). ABC's According to Jim (12.4 million, 5.0/14) at 8:30 p.m. also topped the competition in adults 18-49, building on to its 8 Simple Rules demo lead-in, according to preliminary Nielsen data. NBC didn't see improvement from switching its 8-9 p.m. comedies. The block of In-laws (6.9 million, 2.4/7) at 8 p.m. and Just Shoot Me (8.0 million, 3.0/8) at 8:30 p.m. was down 13% in the 18-49 demographic, and up 5% in total viewers from last week, when Just Shoot Me (6.6 million, 2.7/8) opened the night at 8 p.m. and In-laws (7.7 million, 3.5/9) ran at 8:30 p.m. The two shows' delivery in 18-49 is on par with what Emeril and Three Sisters did for NBC in the time period last year. At 9 p.m., NBC's Frasier (13.6 million, 5.2/13) won the hour with Life with Bonnie (9.3 million, 4.0/10) running second in 18-49, while the two networks' sitcoms at 9:30 p.m., NBC's Hidden Hills (9.9 million, 4.3/11) and ABC's Less than Perfect (9.3 million, 4.1/10) ran neck and neck. CBS' legal drama The Guardian (13.2 million, 3.3/8) topped the 9-10 p.m. hour in total viewers. For the night, ABC averaged 11.6 million viewers and a 4.7/13 in 18-49 to CBS' 14.0 million viewers and a 3.6/9. NBC logged 9.8 million viewers and a 3.8/10, while Fox posted 6.1 million viewers and a 2.9/8 with repeats of That '70s Show, Cedric the Entertainer Presents and John Doe.
- 10/16/2002
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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