FlashForward, Dollhouse & Bat Boy (Oh my!)
Not surprisingly, ABC has given a full season order for FlashForward, actually expanding the episode run from the typical 22 to 25 episodes. The show’s ratings have been pretty solid against tough competition, and newly released DVR figures shows that the show enjoys a significant bump in the number of people watching. Offers Variety, “With FlashForward and ‘V,’ which premieres Nov. 3, ABC is hoping to hold on to sci-fi fans who have been longtime viewers of Lost. Island mystery ends its run in May.”
Over on Fox, the network has stated that despite low ratings, Dollhouse will air all 13 episodes of its second season, at which point the show’s future will be determined. Helping to solidify that particular decision is the fact that analysis of DVR numbers shows that the season two premiere enjoyed a 50% bump in viewers. “We’re going to run all the episodes,” Fox scheduling chief Preston Beckman told The Hollywood Reporter. “We’re not saying we’re happy with those numbers, or accept them, but we don’t have to overreact. It’s one of the reasons that we brought Dollhouse back; we knew it was DVR-friendly. Hopefully we’ll see the overnight ratings increase from week to week. With some shows, you have to look at the bigger picture.”
In the same piece, Joss Whedon, addressing concerns of fans who fear the 13 episodes could be the end of the road for the show, offered, “We’ll definitely have closure but will leave some doors open.”
The Weekly World News, one of the most bizarre (and in some ways beloved) tabloids out there will apparently be the source of a number of projects, the “characters” it focused on making the leap to television. Dreamworks, according to The Hollywood Reporter, is developing a television series based on “Bat Boy,” the bizarre half-human/half-bat that was featured on many a front page (prior to the tabloid going online).
WWN CEO Neil McGinness told The Hollywood Reporter he believes the audience will embrace their characters. “You’re seeing an embrace of the fringe,” he said. “Zombies were big two years ago. Vampires are the rage this year. And we think 2010 will be Bat Boy’s year. [He's] our Superman or Batman. He is in the genre of the trickster hero — like Huckleberry Finn.”
For the full Hollywood Reporter story, click HERE.
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