Here's everything you need to know about the world of television for Sunday, August 31st, 2025:
A NICE PROFILE OF ME
For those of you who are looking for a bit of background on me and my journey to becoming the journalistic curmudgeon of the television and streaming industry, Vince Tuss wrote a profile of me for his newsletter that somehow managed to take our rambling conversation and turn it into a smartly-written profile that I was quite pleased to read. As a bonus, there's a picture of me standing in the dugout at Wrigley Field:
That connection had led to successes with more investigative efforts, including a story about a Minnesotan who worked with casting young actors facing accusations of abuse and later pleading guilty in a couple cases. It’s a story that won him the 2024 David Robb Award for Best Investigative Civil Justice Story at the National Arts & Entertainment Journalism Awards from the Los Angeles Press Club, beating out writers from the Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg News for national recognition. And a $5,000 cash prize, which goes a long way for an independent operator.
He turned another struggle to confirm reporting into a plus: appearances as part of the “Quiet On Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV” documentary that looked at kids TV in the 1990s, most notably the record of impersario Dan Schneider. Both helped to boost his name in a crowded entertainment news marketplace and solidify his reporting bona fides as he struggles for attention and respect against better-staffed outlets.
FORGIVENESS REQUIRES TAKING SOME RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOUR ACTIONS
Like most people, I have made mistakes egregious enough to require an apology. I've hurt people who didn't deserve it, made decisions that were ill-advised and done things that I later realized were hurtful and cruel. I've had to sit across from people and ask their forgiveness. And there have been a few occasions when someone has asked the same from me.
I am no expert on personal ethics, but one thing I have learned over the years is that forgiveness requires more than just saying, "Wow, I'm sorry I got caught, this was inconvenient." It requires digging deep and acknowledging your actions. Admitting to yourself and to the ones you've hurt that you've done wrong. Only then can you be truly forgiven and hopefully learn some life lessons in the process.
For all of the talk about celebrities being "cancelled," the truth is that very few stars truly lose their careers over some example of bad behavior. For every Paula Deen, there's a Louie C.K., who not only didn't really acknowledge he did anything wrong. He's now built a new career making jokes about the experience. Apparently for some people, being accused of yanking off in front of unwilling women can be considered an edgy comedic brand.
As a consumer, learning some favorite celebrity has done something extremely unpleasant can lead to some difficult decisions. What do you do when an actor whose work you enjoy admits to behavior that you find unacceptable? Do you still watch their work? Do you argue they should lose jobs and perhaps their careers?
For me, a lot of the decision comes down to whether the accused is willing to admit they did something wrong. If they can, I am much more willing to forgive them, assuming it feels as if they have accepted their culpability and are making amends. And when I say "Admit they did something wrong," I don't mean issuing some pathetic PR-driven statement along the lines of "I'm sorry if my behavior offended anyone." That's not taking responsibility. That's just a fancy way of asking everyone to ignore the behavior and move on.
The new Paramount+ series NCIS: Tony & Ziva premieres this Thursday and in an alternative universe, I would be looking forward to the show. Michael Weatherly is a gifted actor with a breezy charm that is infectious. When he was on NCIS, Robert Wagner was cast as his father and it made perfect sense. Both actors have a charisma and sex appeal that manages to be both appealing and non-threatening.
When Weatherly left NCIS, it was clear he was going to star in some new show for CBS and that series was Bull. Weatherly played Dr, Jason Bull, who ran a high-end jury consulting business. While his character was more nuanced than viewers had seen during his long run on NCIS, the premise was built to lean on Weatherly's on-camera charm. He could be a bit of a dick, but get away with it by flashing that smile and seeming sympathetic.
But one lesson producers seemed to have learned from NCIS was that viewers enjoyed seeing Weatherly have a love interest. So Eliza Dushku appeared in the final three episodes of the first season in a recurring role that was intended to become a regular role in season two.
Dushku was ultimately fired from the show days after complaining about what she described as inappropriate behavior from Weatherly which resulted in a $9.5 million settlement from CBS:
“I was told that the role would be a six-year commitment to play a smart, strong leading lady, a confident high-powered lawyer meant to counterbalance the existing male lead, and that the role had been written specifically with me in mind,” Dushku said. “However, in my first week on my new job I found myself the brunt of crude, sexualized and lewd verbal assaults. I suffered near constant sexual harassment from my co-star. This was beyond anything I had experienced in my 30-year career.”
She didn’t refer to Weatherly by name, but she added that the male co-star “frequently referred to me as ‘legs.’ He would smell me and leeringly look me up and down. Off script, in front of about 100 crew members and cast members, he once said that he would take me to his rape van and use lube and long phallic things on me and take me over his knee and spank me like a little girl. Another time he told me that his sperm were powerful swimmers.”
Dushku alleged that after speaking to the co-star about toning down his comments, he texted the head of CBS Studios and she was fired the next day. She added that she was silenced by the arbitration clause in her contract.
Weatherly later addressed the allegations in a typically vague sort-of apology in a statement released several years later. "When Eliza told me that she wasn't comfortable with my language and attempt at humor, I was mortified to have offended her and immediately apologized," he stated. "After reflecting on this further, I better understand that what I said was both not funny and not appropriate, and I am sorry and regret the pain this caused Eliza."
Weatherly is apparently still concerned about the consequences of that behavior, given last month's bizarre interview for the upcoming NCIS: Tony & Ziva, in which co-star Cote de Pablo talked about the fact that she didn't believe the show needed an intimacy coordinator because she "trusted" Weatherly. I can't remember another instance in which an actress felt it necessary to say that publicly. Cynics might argue that it was a backdoor way to reinforce Weatherly's character and to imply that if someone had a problem with his behavior, the fault was theirs:
In recent years, intimacy coordinators have become the norm on sets for such steamy scenes, but Cote de Pablo told us that she didn’t use one for her upcoming series with Michael Weatherly. “Did not need one. They asked me first, I think because I’m a female and blah, blah, blah, and I said, ‘I don’t need one. Thank you for offering,'” she shared.
“Michael and I have a lot of trust with each other and are great friends. So, when it comes to shooting these things, we don’t want to be micromanaged. We like to explore it, and we trust each other enough that we allow that to happen.”
As for Weatherly, he recalled, “I said, ‘Whatever Cote wants.’ Love scenes are complicated because that level of nonverbal communication — you kiss someone the way you want to be kissed or you touch someone the way you want to be touched — that is a deep level of communication. Physical interaction starts with trust. Luckily, Cote and I do not have an issue in that area. We had to do that right out of the gate in [NCIS‘s ‘Under Covers’] episode.”
And that discussion was the defining moment for me. Whatever misunderstanding might have taken place on the set of Bull, reporting at the time suggested that an investigation by CBS managed to use outtakes from the show to collaborate at least some of Dushku's allegations. And even now, Weatherly's response seems to be that the problem wasn't him, it was Dushku's reaction to being invited into the "rape van." "Can't you take a joke" is such an overused excuse for bad behavior that is almost become a trope in sexual misconduct cases.
All of this is why I am not going to be watching NCIS: Tony & Ziva, even though the show is likely to be right in the sweet spot for my viewing tastes. I believe in forgiveness. But forgiving requires some level of taking responsibility for one's actions. And so far, I haven't seen that from Michael Weatherly.
ODDS AND SODS
* The Federal Trade Commission said on Tuesday that The Walt Disney Co. will pay $10 million to settle allegations over the labeling of children-focused videos onto YouTube. The complaint alleged the company failed to label videos posted on YouTube as "made for kids," which enabled the collection of data from children under 13.
* The IT prequel series IT: Welcome To Derry will premiere Sunday, October 26th on HBO Max.
* The four-episode animated series Marvel Zombies will premiere Wednesday, September 24th on Disney+. Here is a first look at the series. And here is the official logline: "In Marvel Zombies, after the Avengers are overtaken by a zombie plague, a desperate group of survivors discover the key to bringing an end to the super-powered undead, racing across a dystopian landscape and risking life and limb to save their world."
* Eight months after a former Fox Sports hairstylist accused ex-Undisputed host Skip Bayless of repeatedly pressuring her into having sex with him for over a million dollars, the plaintiff has reportedly reached an agreement with Bayless and Fox Sports. No details of the deal have been reached.
* The Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which will shut down in January after losing federal funding under President Donald Trump, will receive the 2025 Governors Award from the TV Academy.
SUPPORT THE BACK INDIE MEDIA DRIVE
As I mentioned in an earlier email, Too Much TV is part of a September Back Indie Drive, in which 30+ independent publications are taking part. Each one is run by a creator-model journalist who’s building something sustainable, bold, and deeply needed in today’s fractured media environment.
Every day this month I am going to quickly highlight a publication from the campaign list and I hope you'll check them out. Supporting independent media has never been more important and there are truly some talented journalists on the list:
Subscribe for free here. Or you can can upgrade to a paid subscription at this link.
INFOGRAPHIC OF THE DAY
WHAT'S COMING TOMORROW
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 3RD:
* Beavis & Butthead Season Premiere (Comedy Central)
* Countdown Season One Finale (Prime Video)
* Mountain Men Season Premiere (History)
* Reminder Series Premiere (Hulu)
* Wednesday Season 2B Premiere (Netflix)
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4TH:
All the Queen’s Men Season Four Finale (BET+)
Blood & Myth Series Premiere (Hulu)
Countdown: Canelo v Crawford (Netflix)
Fatal Lust (ALLBLK)
Lynley (BritBox)
NCIS: Tony & Ziva Series Premiere (Paramount+)
Pokémon Concierge (Netflix)
The Paper Series Premiere (Peacock)
SEE YOU ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT!