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Channel Surfing: NBC Chases Bruckheimer Fugitive Drama, "Chuck" Writer/Producer Guns for Western at FOX, "Inbetweeners" Heads for Big Screen, and More

Welcome to your Wednesday morning television briefing.

NBC has given a put pilot order to an untitled drama that follows the employees of a unit whose task is to apprehend fugitives. Project, from Warner Bros. Television and Bruckheimer Television, will be written/executive produced by Jennifer Johnson (Cold Case) and executive produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and Jonathan Littman. Deal marks first sale for Bruckheimer at NBC since 2005's E-Ring. (Variety)

FOX has given a script commitment with a penalty to an untitled western from Chuck writer/executive producer Scott Rosenbaum and executive producers McG and Peter Johnson. Project, from Warner Bros. Television and Wonderland Sound and Vision, is said to have a sci-fi twist that is a tip of the hat to Planet of the Apes and will focus on a "a gunslinger caught between worlds," according to Rosenbaum. "What I'm really interested in is the revamping of the Western genre where you still have all of the iconic Western themes and iconic Western tropes," he told Hollywood Reporter, "but the idea is that it will feel incredibly contemporary and will introduce the Western to a whole new generation." (Hollywood Reporter)

The Inbetweeners creators Iain Morris and Damon Beesley are working on a script for a feature film version of their E4 comedy after receiving a commission from Film 4. Feature would likely revolve around an overseas vacation taken by the four friends who are set to return with a third season of Inbetweeners next year. "We always try to make the show as real as we can, and we think the boys of that age tend to go on holiday abroad - we think a film could do justice to that," Morris told The Sun. "Most films I understand never get made, but that’s what we’re doing." The series will air Stateside later this year on BBC America. (Broadcast)

Gavin Rossdale (How to Rob a Bank) has been cast as a guest star in an upcoming episode of Criminal Minds slated to air in November. According to Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello, Rossdale will play a Goth rock star who could also be a vicious serial killer. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Peter Gallagher (The OC) has been cast in USA's espionage drama pilot Covert Affairs where he will co-star as CIA director Arthur Campbell, described as "a regal man and former Naval officer who loves a good fight, great scotch and a filthy joke." (Hollywood Reporter)

Los Angeles Times' Maria Elena Fernandez has a fantastic profile of one of the breakout stars of FOX's Glee, Chris Colfer. (Los Angeles Times's Show Tracker)

Former Brat Packer Judd Nelson will guest star on USA's Psych this winter, where he will play "a CDC researcher who specializes in a made-up Ebola-like ailment called Thornburg’s disease," according to Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

HDNet will offer a sneak preview of Charlize Theron's upcoming feature film The Burning Plain ahead of its theatrical release on September 16th at 8 pm ET/PT. (via Twitter)

TV Guide Network has acquired exclusive cable rights to the entire run of MTV's Punk'd, which contains 100 half-hour episodes. The cabler will air the series back-to-back as a one hour strip beginning later this month. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Comments

Bella Spruce said…
I would love to see an Inbetweeners movie! The class field trip episode was hilarious. I can only imagine what trouble the boys would get up to on an entire holiday abroad!

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