Disney's upcoming 'Planes' was already on turbulent ground with many film fans before it cast Dane Cook as the lead character, so expect the eye rolling and the weary sighs that tend to happen whenever this project is mentioned to be extra pronounced today. 'Planes' just went from being a cash-in spin-off of Pixar's worst film to being a cash-in spin-off of Pixar's worst film starring a not particularly well-liked comedian.
Love him or hate him, reactions certainly ran the gamut when NBC announced that it had partnered for a single-camera sitcom featuring controversial comedian Dane Cook as the acerbic radio host of 'Next Caller.' Initially picked up to series, NBC reportedly changed their minds about the series after shooting four episodes, pulling the plug on production, but Cook seems to have found yet another home. The "Harmful if Swallowed" comedian has put into development a new starring series with the network, but what can fans expect from Dane Cook this time?
And lo, yet another NBC series goes gentle into that good night, prior to even airing a pilot episode. But where 'Mockingbird Lane' still gets to air its expensive debut episode as a Halloween special, NBC's Dane Cook comedy 'Next Caller' seems to have been replaced with dead air. The as-yet-unaired sitcom saw the controversial comedian as an acerbic, jockish radio host, but what might have caused NBC to pass on the four episodes shot?
Like it or not, America, the three-camera sitcom is here to stay, and in the wake of its problematic ratings NBC is looking to make further strides into the genre even beyond the tepidly received 'Whitney' and 'Are You There, Chelsea?'
And clearly, someone somewhere must have asked aloud the question, "how could they get any worse," because the TV gods have very much set their sights on punishing us for tempting fate. Dane Cook is coming to NBC.
Joseph Kahn's 'Detention' is a high-velocity meta mixtape of pop-culture and film conventions old and new. The film premiered at last year's SXSW to highly divisive reviews, but we find ourselves firmly planted in the positive camp. Now there's a new clip on the web for you to find out for yourself.
