Following a development season high on semi-autobiograpical fare, pilot season has continued that trend with at least four of the early projects based on the lives of its creators. Elsewhere, established showrunners including Chuck Lorre (Two and a Half Men, The Big Bang Theory, Mike & Molly) and Joss Whedon (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Firefly) are returning to the pilot pool with a single-mom comedy at CBS and an adaptation of Marvel's S.H.I.E.L.D., respectively. Meanwhile, The CW and CBS are looking to launch spinoffs of established series The Vampire Diaries and NCIS: LA, respectively, while NBC is turning to Parenthood's Jason Katims to reboot the 2002 Hugh Grant movie About a Boy. For its part, Fox is looking to Parks and Recreation duo Mike Schur and Dan Goor to spice up its comedy offerings with a cop sitcom starring Andy Samburg.
These are a few of the highlights of Pilot Season 2013, where ABC, CBS, NBC, ABC and The CW sift through the numerous development projects and move forward in a bid to find the next breakout comedies and dramas. Here's a look at the pilots in contention for the 2012-13 television season, which The Hollywood Reporter will be updating throughout pilot and casting season, so be sure to bookmark the page and come back for the latest news.
(Note: Not included here are projects that already have landed series commitments, including NBC's Michael J. Fox comedy and CBS' adaptation of Stephen King's Under the Dome, among others.)
ABC
COMEDY
How the Hell Am I Normal? (previously How the F Am I Normal)
Logline: A dysfunctional Wonder Years set in the simpler times of the 1980s, inspired by Adam F. Goldberg's childhood.
Cast: Wendi McLendon-Covey
Team: W/EP Adam F. Goldberg (Breaking In); EP Doug Robinson, EP/D Seth Gordon
Studio: Sony Pictures Television, Happy Madison
Format: Single-camera
Location:
Mixology
Logline: A high-concept single-camera comedy from the writers behind The Hangover set in the world of a sexy Manhattan bar chronicling the exploits of singles in search of love -- all over the course of one night.
Cast:
Team: W/EP Jon Lucas, Scott Moore (The Hangover)
Studio: ABC Studios
Format: Single-camera
Location:
Super Fun Night (rolled from CBS last year)
Logline: Revolves around three nerdy female friends, including Pitch Perfect's Rebel Wilson, on a "funcomfortable" quest to have "super fun" every Friday night.
Cast: Rebel Wilson, Kelen Coleman, Kevin Bishop, Lauren Ash, Liza Lapira
Team: W/Co-EP Rebel Wilson; EP Conan O'Brien, David Kissinger, Jeff Ross, EP/D John Riggi
Studio: Warner Bros. Television, Conaco Productions
Format: Multicamera
Location:
Trophy Wife
Logline: A reformed party girl finds herself with an instant family when she falls in love with a man who has three manipulative children and two judgmental ex-wives.
Cast: Bradley Whitford, Malin Akerman, Marcia Gay Harden, Michaela Watkins, Natalie Morales, Ryan Lee
Team: W/EP Emily Halpern (Private Practice), Sarah Haskins; EP Gene Stupnitsky, Lee Eisenberg; D Jason Moore
Studio: ABC Studios
Format: Single-camera
Location:
DRAMA
S.H.I.E.L.D.
Logline: Based on Marvel Comics' secret intelligence organization that has appeared in countless titles including Iron Man, Captain America and The Ultimates since being introduced in the 1960s. The military law-enforcement agency's moniker stands for Strategic Hazard Intervention Espionage Logistic Directorate, which also has evolved over time in the comics.
Cast: Ming-Na, Clark Gregg, Brett Dalton, Elizabeth Henstridge, Ian De Caestecker, Chloe Bennet
Team: W/EP/D Joss Whedon; W/EP Jed Whedon, Maurissa Tancharoen, EP Jeffrey Bell, Jeph Loeb,
Studio: ABC Studios, Marvel TV
Location:
CBS
COMEDY
Mom
Logline: Revolves around a newly sober single mom (Scary Movie's Anna Faris) who tries to pull her life together in Napa Valley.
Cast: Anna Faris
Team: W/EP Chuck Lorre, Eddie Gorodetsky, Gemma Baker (Two and a Half Men)
Studio: Warner Bros. Television, Chuck Lorre Productions
Format: Multicamera
Location:
Ex-Men
Logline: A young guy (Chris Smith) who finds camaraderie living among the more experienced guys he meets in a short-term rental complex.
Cast: Chris Smith, Kal Penn, Jerry O'Connell, Tony Shalhoub, Rebecca Brooks
Team: W/EP/D Rob Greenberg (How I Met Your Mother); EP Eric and Kim Tannenbaum
Studio: CBS Television, Tannenbaum Co.
Format: Single-camera
Location:
Untitled Jim Gaffigan comedy
Logline: The semi-autobiographical comedy revolves around Gaffigan as a happily married and harried New York City father of five -- as he is in real life.
Cast: Jim Gaffigan
Team: W Jim Gaffigan, Peter Tolan (Rescue Me); EP Michael Wimer, Alex Murray
Studio: Sony Pictures Television, Fedora Entertainment
Format: Single-camera
Location:
DRAMA
Logline: Follows Ellen (Toni Collette), a Washington, D.C., surgeon who is thrown into a political conspiracy after being chosen to operate on the president of the United States. Her family is taken hostage, and it's her responsibility to save their lives. It is based on an Israeli format by Alon Aranya, Rotem Shamir and Chayim Sharir that was never produced.
Cast: Toni Collette
Team: W/EP/DJeffrey Nachmanoff (The Day After Tomorrow) EP Jerry Bruckheimer, Jonathan Littman, Omri Givon, Rotem Shamir and Chayim Sharir; Co-EP: KristieAnne Reed, Alon Aranya
Studio: Warner Bros. Television, Jerry Bruckheimer Television
Location:
NCIS: L.A. spinoff (back-door pilot)
Logline: The back-door pilot will air as part of NCIS: L.A. and follow a mobile team of agents who are forced to live and work together as they crisscross the country solving crimes.
Cast:
Team: W/EP Shane Brennan (NCIS: LA)
Studio: CBS Television Studios, Shane Brennan Productions
Location:
CW
DRAMA
The Originals (back-door pilot)
Logline: A spinoff of the CW's The Vampire Diaries revolving around the Original family in New Orleans. In the episode, Klaus returns to the supernatural melting pot that is the French Quarter of New Orleans, a town he helped build centuries ago, and is reunited with his diabolical former protégé Marcel.
Cast: Joseph Morgan, Phoebe Tonkin
Team: W/EP Julie Plec, EP Leslie Morgenstein, Gina Girolamo
Studio: Warner Bros. Television, CBS Studios Television, Alloy Entertainment
Location:
FOX
COMEDY
Untitled Dan Goor/Mike Schur comedy
Logline: Revolves around a diverse group of detectives at a New York precinct.
Cast: Andy Samberg
Team: W/EP Dan Goor, Mike Schur (Parks and Recreation); EP David Miner; P Andy Samberg
Studio: Universal Television, 3 Arts
Format: Single-camera
Location:
NBC
COMEDY
About a Boy
Logline: An adaptation of Nick Hornby's novel and the 2002 Hugh Grant feature film, it follows the relationship between a bachelor man-child and the young boy who moves in next door with his crazy, single mother.
Cast:
Team: W/EP Jason Katims (Parenthood), EP Michelle Lee
Studio: Universal Television, True Jack Productions, Working Title Productions, Tribeca Productions
Format: Single-camera
Location:
Assistance
Logline: Based on Leslye Headland's play of the same name, the female-fronted comedy revolves around Nora, an idealistic assistant who attempts to find balance in her life while juggling the demands of a larger-than-life boss. The project is described as a fast-moving comedy centered on an idealistic "working girl" assistant who is pulled between her colleague ("work husband") and her real life fiancé while trying to manage a demanding (translation: crazy) boss.
Cast:
Team: W/EP Leslye Headland (Bachelorette); EP Will Ferrell, Adam McKay, Chris Hency, Owen Burke
Studio: Universal Television, Gary Sanchez Productions
Format: Single-camera
Location:
Donor Party
Logline: The ensemble comedy, in "new normal fashion," is focused on an irresponsible man forced to grow up when he discovers he has children resulting from his days as a sperm donor. A new family unit develops when a single mom contacts him and he begins to have a relationship with her and the son he never knew he had.
Cast:
Team: W/EP Alex Schemmer (Community); EP Geyer Kosinski (Magic City)
Studio: Universal Television, Lionsgate, Media Talent Group
Format: Single-camera
Location:
The Gates
Logline: Based on the British comedy of the same name, Gates revolves around the parents and staff who navigate the twice-daily social landmine that exists at the school drop-off gates of an elementary school.
Cast: Diana Maria Riva, John Grisetti, Justin Chon, Kathleen Rose Perkins, Christina Kirk
Team: W/EP Cathy Yuspa, Josh Goldsmith ('Til Death, The King of Queens); EPs Aaron Kaplan
Studio: 20th Television, Kapital Entertainment, Feelgood Fiction
Format: Single-camera
Location:
Joe, Joe and Jane
Logline:The semi-autobiographical project centers on a conflict-avoidant children's book author caught in an ongoing tug of war between two needy, flawed people: his wife and his co-author/best friend; it's not about a couple, it's about a "trouple."
Cast:
Team: W/EP Joe Port, Joe Wiseman (New Girl)
Studio: 20th Television
Format: Multicamera
Location:
Untitled Greg Daniels/Robert Padnick comedy
Logline: Revolves around the trials and tribulations of dating in your 20s as told through a group of friends.
Cast:
Team: W/EP Robert Padnick (The Office); EP Greg Daniels, Tracy Katsky, Howard Klein
Studio: Universal Television, Deedle Dee Productions, 3 Arts Entertainment
Format: Single-camera
Location:
DRAMA
After Hours
Logline: An ensemble medical show following Army doctors working the late shift at a San Antonio Hospital.
Cast: Brigid Brannagh, Eoin Macken, Freddy Rodriguez, Jeananne Goossen, Jill Flint, Ken Leung, Robert Bailey Jr.
Team: W/EP Gabe Sachs, Jeff Judah (Life as We Know It); D Pierre Morel
Studio: Sony Pictures Television, Sachs/Judah Productions
Location:
Bloodline
Logline: A contemporary pulp thriller that revolves around an orphaned young girl named Bird Benson, who because of an accident of birth is caught in the struggle between two warring families of mercenaries and killers. Mentored by a Chinese man, Bird has to accept the quest to find and defeat her mother in mortal combat if she is to ever lead a normal life.
Cast:
Team: W/EP David Granziano (Awake, Terra Nova), EP/D Peter Berg, EP Sarah Aubrey
Studio: Universal, Film 44
Location:
I Am Victor
Logline: Based on author Jo Nesbo's upcoming book, the drama is described as House revolving around a high-powered divorce attorney named Victor Port with a unique view of relationships.
Cast:
Team: W/EP Mark Goffman (The West Wing, Studio 60), EP Katie Jacobs (House), Daniel Rappaport, Meghan Lyvers
Studio: Universal Television
Location:
The Secret Lives of Husbands and Wives
Logline: A drama about a murder in suburban California and the secrets exposed in its aftermath.
Cast: James Tupper, Jesse L. Martin, Laura Allen, Martin Henderson, Nicole Ari Parker, Olivia Luccardi, Perry Reeves
Team: W/EP Sascha Penn (Imagination Movers), EPs Jerry Bruckheimer, Jonathan Littman; co-EP KristieAnne Reed; D Mark Pellington
Studio: Warner Bros. Television, Jerry Bruckheimer TV
Location:
Compiled by Lesley.Goldberg@thr.com