TV News Roundup: Netflix Announces Arsenio Hall’s Comedy Special Premiere Date
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In today’s TV news roundup, Netflix announced the premiere date for Arsenio Hall’s comedy special and a “Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” duo (among others) will guest star on “Elena of Avalor.”
CASTING
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“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” stars Rachel Brosnahan and Tony Shalhoub, as well as Auli’i Cravalho (“Moana”), John Leguizamo (“When They See Us”), Taye Diggs (“All American”), Eugenio Derbez (“Overboard”) and Jamie-Lynn Sigler (“The Sopranos”) have lent their voices to Season 3 of the animated“Elena of Avalor,” which premieres Oct. 7 on Disney Junior. Diggs and Derbez guest star in a dia de los Muertos-themed episode in October, while Sigler portrays a princess visiting from a Latino Jewish kingdom in an episode airing in December. A royal coronation special will also air next year.
PROGRAMMING
DirecTV announced the service will air 4K HDR versions of select “Thursday Night Football” games on Fox starting with the Sept. 26 Philadelphia Eagles at Green Bay Packers game. It will continue with select games throughout the season.
AMC Networks announced its second annual “Best Christmas Ever” programming lineup will take place from Nov. 25 to Dec. 25 this holiday season. The month-long programming will provide 700 hours of holiday movies and specials across all five of the networks falling under AMC Networks. “Elf,” “The Polar Express” and “Jack Frost” are just some of the movies that will air during the 31-day programming event.
DATES
Sophia Bush launched a new podcast Sept. 17 called “Work in Progress” on Apple Podcasts. During each episode, Bush will have personal but frank conversations about politics and professional life with guests that inspire her the most. Guests will include Gloria Steinem, Karamo Brown, Shannon Watts, Chelsea Handler, Whitney Cummings, Katie Couric, Jay Shetty, Liz Feldman, Kwame Onwuachi and Jon Favreau.
Facebook Watch announced the return of “Red Table Talk” on Sept. 23. The Emmy-nominated talk show, moderated by Jada Pinkett Smith, Willow Smith and Adrienne Banfield Norris, presents a multi-generational discussion focused on family, LGBTQ-issues, self discovery and more. Pinkett Smith’s Husband Will Smith will make guest star appearances along with friends Chelsea Handler, Alicia Keys and Robyn Crawford in this new batch of episodes.
Netflix set the Oct. 29 as the global launch date for Arsenio Hall‘s comedy special entitled “Smart & Classy.” In the special, Hall will talk about drugs, his appearance on “The Celebrity Apprentice” and performing comedy in today’s political climate.
FIRST LOOKS
Netflix released the second season trailer for “Abstract: The Art of Design” which airs globally Sept. 25. The show dives into the creative and professional lives of successful artists. Season 2 features Icelandic-Danish artist Olafur Eliasson, known for his large scale installations; scientist and professor Neri Oxman recognized for her work combining art and science; Ruth E. Carter, the first African American woman to win an Oscar for costume design; toy designer Cas Holman; Instagram’s former head of design Ian Spalter; and American typeface designer Jonathan Hoefler.
EXECUTIVE NEWS
Hillary Olsen has been named senior vice president of current series at Magical Elves. Olsen previously worked as vice president of development for Our House Media, overseeing the development team that oversaw “Killer Affair.” She also served as the director of current programming at Esquire Network, where she oversaw production and development.
Randy Brown and Peter Cohen were both promoted to senior vice president of Anthem Sports & Entertainment, which includes AXS, HDNet Movies, Game Plus, Fight Network and Impact! Wrestling. Previously, Brown and Cohen served as the company’s strategic advisors. Brown has also worked at ESPN, Tennis Channel and Outdoor Channel. Cohen held senior management roles at HBO, MTV, MuchMusic and CNN International.
Denise Contis has been named executive vice president and head of content for primetime at CNBC. Previously, Contis was senior executive vice president of development and production of Discovery, managing the Emmy-nominated “Naked and Afraid.” She is also recognized for her work at West Coast for TLC where she developed the most-watched show in TLC’s history, “Sarah Palin’s Alaska.”
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