There's not much information yet, but NBC is close to securing three new comedies set to air sometime next season. The first, I'm with Stupid, which I mentioned last month, is a re-tooling of a British series about a man who befriends a boy in a wheelchair and lives in a home for the disabled. The project is being helmed by directors Peter and Bobby Farrelly, along with Ben Silverman, who helped develop both The Office and Ugly Betty for American audiences.
Kath and Kim is based on an Australian series about a divorced mother and her daughter. Nancy Pimental, a former writer for South Park and a former co-host on Win Ben Stein's Money, penned the adaptation and will serve as executive producer with Silverman. The series, along with I'm with Stupid, is being developed for the Farrelly brother's Reveille production company.
Finally, the Channel 4 series The IT Crowd is being re-developed by writer and executive producers David Guarascio and Moses Port (Just Shoot Me, Mad About You); and Joe Port and Joe Wiseman (Son of the Beach, Dilbert).
Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to cryogenically freeze myself until American television actually starts coming up with original ideas. Wake me when that happens, or when clones of Winona Ryder are cheap and readily available, whichever happens first.
Related:
The IT Crowd: Yesterday's Jam - review
Catch IT Crowd online
The TV Squad Podcast: Linda Purl talks about The Office, we talk spoilers, and more
Ask TV Squad: Ghost Whisperer and more!
The TV Squad Podcast: Bill Scheft of The Late Show, Cake Boss, Mad Men and more
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
11-09-2006 @ 6:46PM
gwangi said...
I absolutely love The IT Crowd. Too bad they will completely butcher it when they bring it over here.
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11-09-2006 @ 9:00PM
Raena said...
Ack, not Kath and Kim.
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11-09-2006 @ 10:58PM
Eric J said...
The IT Crowd will never, ever, ever translate. The fact that the show varies so wildly in tone internally (sometimes it feels like the characters are all in different shows) just won't work on American TV. (Imagine The Young Ones as a US show. Sucks doesn't it?)
The very idea is as uncomfortable as a visit from Aunt Irma.
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11-10-2006 @ 2:02AM
darkbhudda said...
I really dread what they are going to Kath & Kim. Probably make them Southern Belles or Rednecks.
I don't see how "I wanna be effluent, Mum" will translate well at all.
The Castle, an Australian comedy, was badly mangled for the American release. I don't mind so much that they changed "rissoles" to "meatloaf", even though in Oz we have no idea what meatloaf is and we don't expect American movies to have meatloaf replaced. What bugged me is that they mispelt words in the subtitles because they couldn't understand the Aussie accent.
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11-10-2006 @ 8:04AM
Joe said...
These shows do not translate at all. But good luck to NBC anyway. I look forward to Kath and Kim US just for the "so bad, it's good" value.
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11-10-2006 @ 9:02AM
Dan said...
The Office made a great American show-- who would have predicted that? I look forward to the Kath and Kim adaptation, precisely because I love the original. Let's wait and see.
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12-03-2006 @ 9:39PM
Kevin said...
Wasn't it NBC that attempted to bring Coupling over? Coupling (at least the early seasons) are ROTFLMAO funny (and I NEVER use that acronym!). The NBC version was so flat that I couldn't keep the characters apart even though I was very familiar with the British version. This will likely be an unmitigated disaster.
Just buy the original and run it here! Americans aren't so dumb that they can't follow the British version (and those that are that dumb won't be able to follow the humor in a show like the IT Crowd anyway).
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12-03-2006 @ 11:22PM
Dorkie Dork said...
AHHHH!!!! NO! LEAVE THE ORIGINALS AS THEY ARE! I F$#%ING HATE THESE TRANSLATIONS!
I am soooo pissed at NBC right now. QUIT F$%#@NG "STUPIFYING" IT YOU BUTCHERING ASSHOLES!
BRING THEM OVER AS THEY ARE OR NOT AT ALL! LISTEN TO ME NBC!
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12-04-2006 @ 3:23AM
drew said...
For Hollywood having all the creative minds under one roof, you would think they would be able to muster up an original idea. How many people come to them with ideas a day? At least 5. I like the rest of you feel it will be horriable. The Office sucks eggs, this will do the same. And I am a huge Steven Carell fan.
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12-04-2006 @ 7:26AM
David said...
to all you nay sayers.
Buy the original and air it in the US? are you kidding me? so we can watch it all over again? I welcome both a second season of IT Crowd from channel 4 and an American remake "butcher job"
I absolutely LOVE "The Office", both UK and US versions. You want to watch re-runs, do it on your own time.
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12-04-2006 @ 10:30AM
grubi said...
For all folks who say that IT WON'T TRANSLATE; IT NEVER DOES:
* Sanford and Son
* All in the Family
* Three's Company
Yeah, that's just three that did translate. Don't throw a blanket judgment on this -- wait and see.
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12-04-2006 @ 2:32PM
Mike Guerena said...
I love the IT Crowd and have been pleasantly surprised by the US version of the Office. If NBC hacks the translation there is a simple solution, don't watch it.
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12-04-2006 @ 6:37PM
Daniel K said...
The only argument for Americanizing THE IT CROWD is that you'd get 24 episodes a year instead of 6 episodes every three years. So the question becomes, will those episodes be watchable?
JUST SHOOT ME was close in tone to IT CROWD, so it's potentially not a complete disaster -- assuming that those guys actually get to work on this show.
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1-03-2007 @ 9:28PM
alan n. said...
the it crowd is one of the funniest sitcoms i have ever seen, hope they remake it well.
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1-12-2007 @ 12:49AM
jose said...
can't wait for the new kath & kim!! anyone seen the extra's on 'the sweetest thing' dvd, nancy pimental the writer is hilarious, this will be great!!
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