Skip to main content

DeKnight Tunes Up for "Viva Laughlin"

CBS musical-mystery series Viva Laughlin (based on the superlative BBC skein Blackpool) has received a rare infusion of fresh blood in the form of a former Joss Whedon staffer.

Steven DeKnight (Angel), late of Smallville, and Tyler Bensinger (Cold Case) have joined the staff of Viva Laughlin as showrunners and executive producers on the series.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, there had been rumblings that Sony, BBC, and network CBS that they would insert another producer or two to run Viva Laughlin alongside executive producer Bob Lowry. Lowry will himself stay on board the genre-melding series, which stars Lloyd Owen, Madchen Amick, Melanie Griffith, Carter Jenkins, Eric Winter, Ellen Woglom, D.B. Woodside, and Hugh Jackman.

Personally, I think the series needs some major improvements and quickly. I was a huge fan of the original Blackpool but this US remake feels awfully forced and not incredibly likely to catch on with mainstream America. Can DeKnight turn this sinking ship around? Stay tuned.

Comments

Anonymous said…
Yeah, Jake, no matter how many links you post to Viva Laughlin clips or whatever is going to make me tune in to this show. Sorry but it's true. It looks like a mess and one that is destined for the garbage can after a few episodes even with DeKnight's involvement.
Anonymous said…
I don't think even Steve can save this.
The CineManiac said…
I really hope that DeKnight can do something with this show. When I heard the premise I was ecstatic, as I'm a big fan of musicals and Jackman. Now everything I hear says it's a huge mess.
So here's hoping it's another '______' and not another 'Cop Rock'
(That blank spot is for a successful Musical Television series, unfortunately I couldn't think of one)
Anonymous said…
Cinemaniac,

Sadly, I don't think this show will fill your expectations. The version of the pilot that I saw was pretty horrible. That said, the original is great so I suggest trying to find a copy of that instead. You'll be much happier!
The CineManiac said…
Thanks Bela,
I'll look for it.

Popular posts from this blog

What's Done is Done: The Eternal Struggle Between Good and Evil on the Season Finale of "Lost"

Every story begins with thread. It's up to the storyteller to determine just how much they need to parcel out, what pattern they're making, and when to cut it short and tie it off. With last night's penultimate season finale of Lost ("The Incident, Parts One and Two"), written by Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, we began to see the pattern that Lindelof and Cuse have been designing towards the last five seasons of this serpentine series. And it was only fitting that the two-hour finale, which pushes us on the road to the final season of Lost , should begin with thread, a loom, and a tapestry. Would Jack follow through on his plan to detonate the island and therefore reset their lives aboard Oceanic Flight 815 ? Why did Locke want to kill Jacob? What caused The Incident? What was in the box and just what lies in the shadow of the statue? We got the answers to these in a two-hour season finale that didn't quite pack the same emotional wallop of previous season

Pilot Inspektor: CBS' "Smith"

I may just have to change my original "What I'll Be Watching This Fall" post, as I sat down and finally watched CBS' new crime drama Smith this weekend. (What? It's taken me a long time to make my way through the stack of pilot DVDs.) While it's on following Gilmore Girls and Veronica Mars on Tuesday nights (10 pm ET/PT, to be exact), I'm going to be sure to leave enough room on my TiVo to make sure that I catch this compelling, amoral drama. While one can't help but be impressed by what might just be the most marquee-friendly cast in primetime--Ray Liotta, Virginia Madsen, Jonny Lee Miller, Amy Smart, Simon Baker, and Franky G all star and Shohreh Aghdashloo has a recurring role--the pilot's premise alone earned major points in my book: it's a crime drama from the point of view of the criminals, who engage in high-stakes heists. But don't be alarmed; it's nothing like NBC's short-lived Heist . Instead, think of it as The Italian

The Daily Beast: "How The Killing Went Wrong"

While the uproar over the U.S. version of The Killing has quieted, the show is still a pale imitation of the Danish series on which it is based. Over at The Daily Beast, you can read my latest feature, "How The Killing Went Wrong," in which I look at how The Killing has handled itself during its second season, and compare it to the stunning and electrifying original Danish series, Forbrydelsen , on which it is based. (I recently watched all 20 episodes of Forbrydelsen over a few evenings.) The original is a mind-blowing and gut-wrenching work of genius. It’s not necessary to rehash the anger that followed in the wake of the conclusion last June of the first season of AMC’s mystery drama The Killing, based on Søren Sveistrup’s landmark Danish show Forbrydelsen, which follows the murder of a schoolgirl and its impact on the people whose lives the investigation touches upon. What followed were irate reviews, burnished with the “burning intensity of 10,000 white-hot suns