‘MacGyver’ update will no longer be gun-free zone
Lucas Till
Colbert
Patsy Ramsey and her husband, John
Jim Parsons
Kevin James
Michael Weatherly will play Dr. Jason Bull, a character based on Dr. Phil in the CBS series “Bull,” which premieres Sept. 20 on CBS.
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. – A roundup of news from the Television Critics Association summer meeting, at which TV networks and streaming services are presenting details on upcoming programs.
One of the hallmarks of the 1980s series “MacGyver,” starring Richard Dean Anderson, was his avoidance of gun and reliance on his wits to disarm or keep the bad guys at bay.
MacGyver hasn’t changed his outlook in the CBS reboot starring Lucas Till, but that doesn’t mean it will be a gun-free show.
“It will be unrealistic to do this type of show and not have anybody have any type of gun,” executive producer Peter Lenkov said. “Macgyver’s a guy if he needs a weapon he will build it.”
Someone who will use them, however, is the Jack Dalton character, now played by George Eads, who has a military background.
“He sees the value in a gun, in a defensive weapon,” Lenkov said.
“Macgyver” premieres at 8 p.m. Sept. 23 on CBS.
Stephen Colbert, who capitalized on the political conventions with live airings of his late-night show, will do the same for the presidential and vice presidential debates.
“The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” will air live on CBS after two of the scheduled debates between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, on Sept. 26 and Oct. 19, and following the Tim Kaine-Mike Pence debate Oct. 4, the network said.
Colbert, who is in his first-season transition from his Comedy Central series “The Colbert Report,” clearly reveled in making his CBS show more topical with convention comedy.
It also yielded what the network called his “biggest viral clips to date,” a measure beyond ratings of how much attention a show is attracting.
Those popular bits: fellow Comedy Central alumnus Jon Stewart’s guest appearance and Broadway star Laura Benanti’s impersonation of Melania Trump.
The host also has introduced a version of the faux Colbert he played on “Colbert Report,” using him to crack biting political jokes. Colbert told viewers that lawyers from his old company said the blowhard cable news host he had played was not his intellectual property – so he introduced “Stephen Colbert’s identical cousin.”
CBS entertainment chief Glenn Geller was asked if negotiations were underway to allow Colbert to use more of his old character. He ducked the question, saying that Colbert addressed it on his show and that he would let him speak for himself.
Twenty years after the murder of 6-year-old JonBenet Ramsey, three networks are dedicating programming to the unsolved case.
CBS will air a six-part docuseries, “The Case of: JonBenet Ramsey,” the network said. Original investigators will team up with new experts to re-examine the evidence using today’s technology and forensics. They also will rebuild the crime scene, conduct interviews and offer new theories.
“The Case of: JonBenet Ramsey” premieres at 8:30 p.m. Sept. 18.
Lifetime also announced Wednesday that it has started production on “Who Killed JonBenet?” The film will premiere later this fall.
Investigation Discovery announced earlier this month that it will air a three-night series, “JonBenet: An American Murder Mystery,” beginning at 10 p.m. Sept. 12.
JonBenet, a child beauty queen, was found beaten and strangled in the basement of her family’s home in Boulder, Colo., on Dec. 26, 1996.
Kevin James is happy to be back on TV and equally glad to be filming on Long Island, N.Y., where he grew up.
James stars in CBS’ new sitcom “Kevin Can Wait” as a police officer whose retirement brings unexpected challenges as he gets closer to his three children and fills his time with a variety of jobs. Erinn Hayes (“Childrens Hospital”) stars as his wife.
“I wanted to have something special” as a follow-up to “The King of Queens,” he said, the sitcom that aired from 1998 to 2007. He’s spent the intervening years making movies, including “Mall Cop” and “Grown Ups.”
Producing “Kevin Can Wait” at a Long Island soundstage is expensive, but makes the show distinctive among the typical Los Angeles-set comedies, James said. It’s gotten a warm welcome from the community, he said.
“There’s a buzz about it that I’ve never felt before, and it’s really exciting,” he told a TV critics meeting Wednesday.
James, a Long Island native, said the comedy makes an effort to be authentic to its location, which he said “plays like a character in the show.”
The production is using mom-and-pop pizza places that are part of his youth for location scenes and recreates some telling elements found in the homes of local police officers, James said.
The set design for the family’s house includes a “little memorial” honoring victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
The set also includes a cross displayed upon a wall, reflecting that many officers “rely on their faith,” he said.
Michael Weatherly said playing a character based on Dr. Phil in the upcoming CBS series “Bull” was just what the doctor ordered.
Weatherly was a regular cast member on CBS’ procedural, “NCIS,” and left at the end of last season.
“I really felt happy with the resolution of the character and my time on the show,” he said. “I wasn’t burnt out (by ‘NCIS’) but I was ready for a new challenge. Sometimes a change is as good as a rest,” Weatherly said.
“Michael is a star and I think we’ve created a star part for him,” said executive producer Paul Attanasio.
“He’s just really good with dialogue and writers inherently like actors who can do lines and Michael can really do lines. He’s just got fantastic comic timing,” he said.
In “Bull,” Weatherly is Dr. Jason Bull, who works for a trial consulting firm.
McGraw himself worked in that field before he became a TV personality. He advised Oprah Winfrey on her legal case when she was sued by Texas cattle ranchers for defamation.
Winfrey liked his no nonsense attitude, and she put him on her show.
“Bull” premieres at 9 p.m. Sept. 20.
The universe is likely to keep expanding for TV’s top-rated comedy, “The Big Bang Theory.”
With cast contracts up for renewal, CBS Entertainment President Glenn Geller was asked at a TV critics meeting Wednesday whether he’s optimistic the show will continue.
“We are very confident that everyone involved wants more ‘Big Bang’ past year 10, and I know (producer) Warner Bros. will make those deals,” Geller replied.
The series about brainiacs and those who love them has an ensemble cast led by Jim Parsons, Johnny Galecki, Kaley Cuoco and Mayim Bialik. It begins its 10th season at 8 p.m. Sept. 19, then moves to its airing regular 8 p.m. Thursday slot on Oct. 27.
Executive producer Jason Katims said he’s still open to revisiting “Parenthood,” but just not yet. “I would see picking it up after much time has passed,” he said Wednesday following a press event to promote his upcoming CBS medical drama “Pure Genius.”
“It’s got to start with a story you’re burning to tell. When I get to that point where I say, ‘I want to tell this story about the Bravermans.’ … then I’ll go about the work of calling Peter Krause or Lauren (Graham) and everybody else and say, ‘Are you up for this?”‘
When he is ready, Katims said he has “no idea” where that story will live, whether it’s Netflix or Hulu or some other streaming service or site.
“The landscape is so rapidly changing, so at that time it would be like, ‘OK, what would be the right place to do this?”‘
“Parenthood” ended its six-season run on NBC in 2015. The show followed a large, close family living in the San Francisco Bay area and became known for its emotional storylines, like breakups, fertility struggles, PTSD and cancer.
Stock up on tissues because Katims said “Pure Genius” will also tug at the heart.
“I like accessing the emotional center of stories and it’s become the vocabulary of how I think about story,” he said.