Friday, November 15, 2013

NEWS: Billy Miller Leaving Y&R?; Sean Carrigan on Contract; New Role For Debbi Morgan; Diversity at FOX; The Richest and Poorest Shows on Network TV

Is Billy Miller leaving THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS?
With contract negotiations with Billy Miller not going well, Daytime Confidential is reporting that Y&R is preparing for the worst by looking for a replacement, and that the recent casting call for Josh (Paul's relative) is really about finding potential candidates for the next Billy. Sources say that the show is testing actors opposite Amelia Heinle (Victoria) today. Miller's current deal will reportedly expire next month.

EDITOR'S NOTE: In 2011, GENERAL HOSPITAL told a similar story of one child dying in a hit and run accident and his organs (kidneys in that case) were used to save another child. Ratings rose in the short-term but months later the Emmy-winning actor who played the father of the child that died left GH. Could history be repeating itself on Y&R?

Sean Carrigan now on contract at THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS
The actor, who guest-starred on MODERN FAMILY this week, tweeted the news: "Thrilled to be on contract at #YR and excited for what is ahead for "Stitch" on @CBSDaytime @YRInsider @YandR_CBS #CBS"

ALL MY CHILDREN's Debbi Morgan joins Starz drama POWER
La La Anthony will play LaKeisha Grant – childhood friend to Tasha St. Patrick (Naturi Naughto) and her closest confidant who is kept in the dark on certain aspects of Tasha’s life out of necessity. Morgan will play Estelle, Tasha’s mom.

Tika Sumpter Cast In James Brown Biopic
She will play Yvonne Fair, a singer in the James Brown Revue who recorded Brown’s “I Found You,” which later was reworked into his classic “I Got You (I Feel Good).”

CBS Will Stream JFK Assassination Coverage Online in 'Real Time'
The streaming will start at 1:40 p.m. ET on Nov. 22, the same time the first CBS breaking news bulletins hit airwaves in 1963. The coverage of historic newscasts will continue through the weekend, marking those famous "four days in November" that comprised the assassination through President Kennedy's funeral.

Fox Says Diversity Leads To Good Ratings And Better Business
Diversity increases the chance Fox will pick up a new show, promote it, syndicate it and see it do well with audiences. Today's TV executives are betting that millennials expect more diversity in their pop culture than previous generations — a thought echoed in a recent study released by UCLA that found more viewers were drawn to shows that mirrored the country's ethnic diversity, with smaller audiences for programs on either side of parity.

The Dirty Secret of Binge-Watching
The truth about binge-watching is right there in the name. When we binge-eat and binge-drink we don’t just chug glasses of Château Lafite or stuff our faces with lobster. (Though maybe we would if they were close at hand.) Instead we drink watery beer and down potato chips. And like so much so-so TV, they can really hit the spot. This is why Netflix’s devotion to binge-watching is so canny, but not necessarily artistic, and why networks like FX, TBS, and TNT are currently fighting to be able to stream entire seasons of their own shows: Presented with a chance to binge-watch, people do.

Actually, There’s a Difference Between “Binge Watchers” and “Couch Potatoes”
Crucial to the couch-potato mindset was the total indifference to whatever happened to be on. Equally crucial to the couch-potato mindset is the lack of retention of what you saw while engaging in the activity.

The Richest and Poorest Shows on Network TV
The median MODERN FAMILY viewer in the 18-49 demographic rakes in $81,100 annually, according to Nielsen data (the highest of any show). BOB'S BURGER watchers in the demo, on the other hand, earn around $48,000 per year (the lowest).

Pop Culture Pet Peeve: TV shows with bad special effects
ONCE UPON A TIME (and ONCE UPON A TIME IN WONDERLAND): fairies flitting across the screen as the human actors gaze at the wrong spot, Jiminy Cricket looking like the product of a hallucination, every fairy tale or otherworldly realm looking like an overly photoshopped work that characters seemingly float in front of. And I know these scenes aren’t meant to look realistic, but when the unrealistic parts of these fantasies look hastily created, it lowers the quality of the entire show. Just because a show is based in a fantasy world or includes non-human characters, it doesn’t mean everything has to be created by the visual effects team.

Klaus Mikaelson is returning to THE VAMPIRE DIARIES
THE ORIGINALS' Klaus (Joseph Morgan) will cross over onto THE VAMPIRE DIARIES for the first time since he exited the series in the Season 4 finale. As part of his goodbye — and in one of our favorite scenes of all time! — Klaus told Caroline (Candice Accola) that her boyfriend Tyler (Michael Trevino) was free to return to Mystic Falls. He then added, "He's your first love. I intend to be your last."

Is There a FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS Curse?
With the premiere of Sunday night's ALMOST HUMAN, which features actress Minka Kelly, we'll have yet another opportunity to see if one of the beloved kids of FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS can make good in the post-Dillon years. (The grownups have done fine.) We've some reason to wonder, as the industry has not been kind to a lot of our old friends.

Jason Ritter returning to PARENTHOOD
Ritter will reappear in Episode 19, slated to air on April 24, when Mark has a chance encounter with one of the show’s characters (not necessarily his ex, Sarah).

10 comments:

  1. I like Billy Miller but relieved that no distant Abbott cousin is coming to Y&R.

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  2. Billy Miller is amazing as Billy Abbott, but whenever I see him appearing in prime time shows I'm not impressed by his works. If he gets a great gig somewhere else, I'm fine with him leaving Y&R, but I really hope he stays on that soap.

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  3. I didn't know the Billy Miller news was a surprise. I figured that the casting calls were for Billy Abbott.

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  4. Glad to hear that Debbi Morgan is getting a shot at prime time, but was kind of hoping she would show up on GH as TJ's missing mother that's been getting mentioned again lately.

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  5. Well I like Billy Miller on Y&R but i figured that the 'new Abbott' might be his replacement..hope they can work out an agreement!?

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  6. Having seen Debbi Morgan give memorable performances in other media such as Eve's Bayou, perhaps it's a good thing that she is doing something other than Daytime for awhile. Good luck to her!

    Wow, kind of surprised at the $ gulf between The Middle and Modern Family. Glee, I guess I'm not surprised at the gulf in earnings but I am a bit surprised that they're at the bottom.

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  7. The Delia storyline on Y&R and the GH storyline referred to (it was the s/l where a drunken Luke Spencer (Tony Geary) accidentally ran down his grandson) had one common thread---the dreadful Jill Farrah Fowler. She was EP at GH at that time. She is now EP of Y&R. In the case of GH, Jonathan Jackson (Lucky) left shortly thereafter. If Billy leaves Y&R, it will be history repeating itself.

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  8. I really like Billy Miller. It is so sad that he is leaving. Wish they would reconsider keeping him on. Will really miss you Billy. Hope to see you on something else in the very near future.

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  9. Losing Billy is NOT good for Y&R .....some characters can NOT be replaced and he is one of them !

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  10. There are few actors that can pull off the Jack Nicholson look (bad boy sweetheart) as well as Bill Miller can. You might want to think twice before not renewing his contract.

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