Weekly Television News

[FH]

Sorry, it's been a slow week on the news-front for some odd reason....

Lost in Space Series in the Works Source: Variety Wednesday, September 24, 2003

Kevin Burns and Jon Jashni's Synthesis Entertainment is teaming with director John Woo and scribe Doug Petrie on a new TV take of Lost in Space that's generating heated interest from several networks.

Synthesis, a company formed by Burns and Jashni to bring new life to the creations of Irwin Allen, last revived "Lost" at NBC as a telepic; that project went away following the death of original "Space"-man Jonathan Harris.

The new take on Lost in Space will return the show to its roots as a family drama, which is what Allen intended when he penned the original pilot.

"This is a drama about a family that survives an incredible cataclysm," Burns tells Variety. "'Lost in Space' became a different show because of Jonathan Harris and his talent. That was fabulous, but what Doug did was go back to the show Irwin intended to make. Will there be aliens and monsters and robots (in the new show)? Absolutely. But that's not what it's about."

Burns said the project will be set about 100 years in the future and will feature a relatable, contemporary family at its core.

[FH]

Lethal Weapon Duo Bring Nice Guys to CBS Source: The Hollywood Reporter Wednesday, September 24, 2003

The Lethal Weapon duo of producer Joel Silver and writer Shane Black are bringing their trademark high-octane action to the small screen.

They are teaming up with Emmy-winning director-producer Thomas Schlamme for Nice Guys, a buddy detective drama for CBS. Silver called the show "essentially a reinvention of the private eye genre."

Silver Pictures also has set up a family drama centered on a child prodigy with writer Josh Friedman at Fox and Time Patrol, a drama based on Poul Anderson's futuristic novel, at Sci Fi Channel.