Author Archive
 

 

THE SKED PILOT REPORT: PREMIERING TONIGHT – FOX’s “New Girl”

> Disclaimer:  Network pilots now in circulation are not necessarily in the form that will air in the Fall.  Pilots are often reedited and rescored, and in some cases even recast or reshot.  So these critiques sh...
by Mitch Salem
 

 
 

THE SKED’S BUSTED PILOT THEATRE: “Exit Strategy”

>See A Word About Busted Pilots On paper, EXIT STRATEGY looked like one of the hot FOX pilots this past season, a high-profile (Ethan Hawke’s first TV project) espionage thriller in the vein of 24 that could inherit that ...
by Mitch Salem
 

 

 

THURSDAY NIGHT BOX OFFICE: “2 Guns” Starts Small

  2 GUNS (Universal), with a 10PM Thursday start, had an unexceptional $1.2M launch, on the low end of the summer.  But while it was below White House Down‘s $1.35M, and that action movie went on to just a $24.9M we...
by Mitch Salem
 

 
 

THE SKED’S 2012/13 FIRST CUT: NBC Needs & Possibilities

> Today Mitch Metcalf, veteran programming executive Ted Frank and I continue our week-long pre-Upfronts look at the challenges facing each of the broadcast networks and their potential strategies for next season.  We̵...
by Mitch Salem
 

 

 

THE SKED PILOT REVIEW: “Touch”

> TOUCH:  Mondays 9PM on FOX, starting March 19 – Change the Channel FOX’s new series TOUCH got off to a very good start in the ratings with a “preview” episode last week (having American Idol as a ...
by Mitch Salem
 

 
 

THE SKED Midseason Finale Review: “Beauty & the Beast”

  New showrunner Brad Kern (working with series creators Sherri Cooper and Jennifer Levin) has made plenty of changes to BEAUTY & THE BEAST, but mostly they haven’t been improvements.  The gothic romanticism of ...
by Mitch Salem
 

 

 

BEHIND THE FRIDAY BOX OFFICE – 11/29/13

  Mitch Metcalf has a great analysis of the continuing strength of THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE (Lionsgate) after its $31.3M Friday in his box office post today–highly recommended.  Catching Fire should set a sl...
by Mitch Salem
 

 
 

SHOWBUZZDAILY’s State of the Studio: 20th Century Fox

  Our parade of studio summers continues. We’ve reviewed Disney, Warner Bros, Paramount, and Sony, and today’s focus is on 20th Century Fox. Fox has had a distinct strategy this summer, counterprogramming with ...
by Mitch Salem
 

 

 

THE SKED: NBC Is Still Picking Up

      NBC’s early pick-up spree continued late today with orders for 2 more sitcoms in addition to the previously ordered Go On, Save Me and The New Normal. The more high-concept entry is 1600 PENN, a singl...
by Mitch Salem
 

 
 

TORONTO FILM FESTIVAL REVIEW: “Third Person”

  There is a reason, or at least an argument, for why almost everything in Paul Haggis’s THIRD PERSON feels synthetic and contrived–but I can’t make it here, because doing so would expose the film’...
by Mitch Salem
 

 

 

UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY’s Top 150 Wednesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 12.5.2018

      NETWORK FINALS:  There were no changes from this morning’s preliminary numbers.         Broadcast Official Nationals Program Ratings Chart     CABLE HIGHLIGHTS:  ESPN’...
by Mitch Salem
 

 
 

THE SKED: Tuesday Ratings – Network Scorecard – 10/4/11

> The excitement of Premiere Week is over, and shows are settling into their “real” numbers. FOX: The small decline for NEW GIRL (which had another charming episode last night–the show has found its creative g...
by Mitch Salem
 

 

 

THE SKED: Sunday’s Showtime, HBO Premiere Ratings

  Despite strong competition in every direction on Sunday night, Showtime had a very strong start for its winter line-up, setting new records for SHAMELESS, HOUSE OF LIES and CALIFORNICATION.  Demo numbers aren’t ye...
by Mitch Salem
 

 
 

THE SKED SEASON FINALE REVIEW: “True Blood”

  This was, for the most part, a solid rebuilding season for TRUE BLOOD.  The show survived a replacement in showrunners when series creator Alan Ball stepped down after 5 years–and then a replacement of that replac...
by Mitch Salem
 

 

 

THE SHOWBUZZDAILY REVIEW: “Broken City”

  BROKEN CITY:  Watch It At Home – Wahlberg and Crowe In An Intriguing But Too Simplistic Thriller Studios love nothing better than predictability, so since Mark Wahlberg had a tidy January hit last year with Contra...
by Mitch Salem