Between Sundance and the Oscars, it might seem like its all movies all the time, but some new developments in the TV world have our attentions pointed toward the small screen…
Nicolas Winding Refn‘s still mostly-under-wraps sci-fi remake/television series “Barbarella” now has a home at Amazon Studios. It seems to be the kick in the pants the project needs, as a showrunner is now being sought with the creatives—writers Neal Purvis and Robert Wade (“Skyfall“), executive producer Refn (who will also direct)—expecting a pilot order. No word yet on who will take on the iconic title role, but if things keep moving, we’re sure that conversation will be starting soon. [Deadline]
We were stoked when we first heard about it, and now we’re even more excited as Showtime has ordered to series “Happyish,” a new show starring Philip Seymour Hoffman and Kathryn Hahn, with Rhys Ifans added to the cast. Previously known as “Trending Down, ” the series was created by Shalom Auslander and developed by director Ken Kwapis and Alexandra Beattie, and it will find Hoffman playing a man working at an ad agency, whose services may no longer be required when the company gets taken over. Hahn plays his wife in what is being set up as a pointed look at youth culture. [Variety]
Over at Netflix, they’ve ordered up 9 episodes of “Marco Polo,” a Weinstein Company project about the famed explorer. Joachim Ronning and Espen Sandberg (“Kon-Tiki,” “Max Manus: Man of War”), will produce and direct, and it will likely help them get their sea legs before helming “Pirates Of The Caribbean 5.” Production will begin later this year. [Variety]
Also over at Netflix, Kyle Chandler has joined an untitled family thriller series from the creators of “Damages.” The show “centers on a family of adult siblings whose secrets and scars come to light with the return of their black-sheep brother….Chandler will play John, the married middle brother who takes care of the family, who is described as the kind of responsible guy who would work in law enforcement and the opposite of his older, black-sheep brother, Danny.” 13 episodes are on tap. [THR]
Meanwhile, Marvel is throwing fans a treat with the news that Lady Sif (Jamie Alexander) will pop her head into “Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.” She’ll be appearing in episode 15 and of course, no other details about her journey from Asgard to Earth. But the network is happy. “I’ve read the script on it and I think it’s going to be great,” said ABC honcho Paul Lee. [IMDB]
Lastly, a new teaser has dropped for John Logan and Sam Mendes‘ Showtime horror thing “Penny Dreadful,” that brings together Dr. Frankenstein, Dorian Grey, and folks from Dracula. Eva Green, Josh Hartnett, and Timothy Dalton make up the oddball cast and we’re not sure what we think about this. Watch below and tell us your thoughts. “Penny Dreadful” premieres on May 11th. [Collider]