Here's everything you need to know about the world of television for Tuesday, March 12th, 2024.
PRODUCTION NOTES
Tomorrow (Wednesday) at 8:30 am ET, the review embargo lifts for the new four-part Investigation Discovery documentary Quiet On Set: The Dark Side Of Kids TV. I can't say anything about the special until then, other than I was interviewed for the doc and make a few appearances over the four hours. And no, I'm not thrilled by the way I look on camera.
I'll be posting my review then and will have more to say in some stand-along pieces later in the week.
I did a lot of reporting about Schneider after his exit from Nickelodeon and I am going to be interested to see if this doc inspires more people to come forward and talk about their experiences. As an example, I posted this unnamed commentary from a star from one of his shows. But despite my best efforts, I couldn't convince her to cooperate with the producers.
It may have been 10, 15 or 20 years since they worked at Nickelodeon, but some trauma just sticks with you.
SPEAKING OF PARAMOUNT
There are reports out today that Apollo Global Management is considering making a bid for Paramount Global. Unlike the proposal from Skydance Media and other equity fund partners, Apollo is apparently interested strictly in Paramount's assets, not National Amusements Inc. (NAI), which controls 77% of Paramount's voting stock and has a 10% financial stake in the company.
As you can imagine, while that would make a deal less expensive, it would also lessen the amount of money Shari Redstone would make on the deal. And NAI has the ability to block the deal if the level of unhappiness is high enough.
A bigger question is what Apollo would do with Paramount if it did acquire the company. Are they calculating that they can cut costs enough to justify keeping the company in one piece? Or do they try and part out the company to the highest bidder like it was a valuable sports car with a bad engine?
Apollo already owns some significant media assets: a majority stake in Cox Media Group, which owns a portfolio of local TV stations, radio stations and newspapers and a minority stake in Legendary Entertainment.
There are a number of options available for Apollo and there's no way to know what they might do. It's easy to see a scenario in which Apollo sells off some of the international networks, including Channel 5 in the UK and Australia's Ten Network. In fact, while US reporters tend to forget Paramount's global TV networks, there are a lot of them spread around the world, including everything from the JV SkyShowtime to a minority stake in the EMEAA network Viacom 18.
There has been a lot of interest in the BET division and some of the other assets such as the Consumer Products and Experiences Division are arguably non-core assets. So there are a lot of ways the company could shed assets and still remain a viable studio.
I'M INTERESTED IN HEARING THE REST OF THE STORY, ONCE IT FINALLY LEAKS OUT
The Hollywood Reporter has a really strange story about X-Men 97 creator Beau DeMayo, who has apparently been fired from the show by Disney weeks before its premiere:
DeMayo, a Marvel regular who previously wrote on live-action series Moon Knight as well as early drafts of company’s delayed-but-still-upcoming vampire thriller Blade, had completed writing duties on season two of X-Men ’97, was lining up press, and making plans to attend the show’s Hollywood premiere on March 13. He was even discussing loose ideas for a third season with members of his team.
But early last week, Marvel and DeMayo suddenly parted ways. His company email was deactivated and cast and crew were informed he was no longer on the project. DeMayo’s Instagram account, once a source for X-Men updates, was deleted. No reason for the firing was given.
Marvel had no comment. DeMayo’s representatives did not return calls for comment and emails to the showrunner yielded no response.
I reached out to a number of people this afternoon and every possible explanation I heard was more rumor than anything else. So I'll keep digging and we'll see what unfolds over the next few weeks. And if anyone out there has any information to share (it's always off-the-record unless you tell me otherwise), email me at
TWEET OF THE DAY
ODDS AND SODS
* CBS has picked up the drama Fire Country for a third season.
* Reality Blurred's Andy Dehnart has a really interesting interview with Chef Eric Adjepong, whose new Food Network series Wildcard Kitchen premieres tonight.
* CBS has also renewed Ghosts for a fourth season.
* New Line Cinema's film adaptation of Stephen King’s 1975 bestselling novel Salem’s Lot will debut on Max in late 2024. It was previously expected to be a theatrical release.
* The 51st Annual Daytime Emmy Awards will air live on Friday, June 7th, at 8 p.m. ET, with a tape delay for West Coast viewers.
* Apple TV+ has given a series order for a show starring Owen Wilson as a former pro golfer who needs to get his life back in order. Wilson will play Pryce Cahill, whose golf career ended prematurely 20 years ago. After he gets fired from his job at a sporting goods store in Indiana and his wife leaves him, Pryce sees a troubled 17-year-old golf phenom as his way back. The series was created by Jason Keller (Ford v. Ferrari).
* If you have warm feelings for the old WB family drama 7th Heaven, then you are the target audience for the new Prime Video series The Baxters, which premieres on Thursday, March 28th.
* FuboTV has added MASN to its channel lineup.
* Nickelodeon will air Kids' Choice Awards 2024 live on Saturday, July 13th. This year's show will celebrate the 25th anniversary of SpongeBob SquarePants.
* The HBO original documentary The Truth Vs. Alex Jones premieres Tuesday, March 26th.
* TLC announced what it describes as a "new medical transformation" limited series, entitled Take My Tumor. According to the network, it follows "three doctors removing tumors from patients with extreme cases."
WHAT'S NEW TONIGHT AND TOMORROW
TUESDAY, MARCH 12TH:
* Boat Story Series Premiere (Freevee)
* Fixer To Fabulous: Italiano Series Premiere (HGTV)
* Never Seen Again (Paramount+)
* Password Season Two (NBC)
* 7 Little Johnsons Season Fourteen Premiere (TLC)
* Steve Trevino: Simple Man (Netflix)
* The Lionheart (HBO)
* Turning Point: The Bomb And The Cold War (Netflix)
* Wildcard Kitchen Series Premiere (Food)
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 13TH, 2024:
* Bandits (Bandidos) (Netflix)
* FEUD Season Two (Capote vs. The Swans) Finale (FX)
* Little Wing (Paramount+)
* Prison Brides Season One finale (Lifetime)
* Teen Mom: Family Reunion Season Three Premiere (MTV)
* The Amazing Race Season Thirty Six Premiere (CBS)
SEE YOU ON WEDNESDAY!
Too Much TV: Your TV Talking Points For Tuesday, March 12th, 2024
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- By Rick Ellis
