Cary Fukunaga is returning to TV. The Emmy-winning director of True Detective will executive produce and helm The Alienist, a drama based on the best-selling novel by Caleb Carr. He’ll be joined by Oscar-winner Eric Roth (Forrest Gump) as executive producer and Oscar-nominee Hossein Amini, who will write and also executive produce the series. Set in late 19th century New York City, the novel tells the story of Dr. Laszlo Kreizler who, with the help of newspaper reporter John Moore and police commissioner Theodore Roosevelt, uses the emerging discipline of psychology to track down one of New York City’s first serial killers. [Deadline]
On the heels of his success with Kingsman: The Secret Service, Matthew Vaughn is reportedly in talks to direct Flash Gordon for 20th Century Fox. J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay (Star Trek 3) wrote the script, which is based on the 1930s comic about a space explorer fighting the tyrannical ruler Ming the Merciless on the planet Mongo. Vaughn is also well known for directing Kick-Ass and X-Men: First Class, so this would be his third superhero project. [Deadline]
Netflix’s surprise hit Orange Is the New Black will be returning for a fourth season in 2016. Season 3 of the dramedy is set to premiere June 12 and reunites Laverne Cox, Laura Prepon, Kate Mulgrew, Uzo Aduba and Natasha Lyonne as female inmates incarcerated at a Brooklyn women’s federal prison. [Variety]
Netflix has ordered its biggest documentary project to date. Our Planet, an eight-part series exploring remote wilderness areas across the globe, hails from the creators of Planet Earth. Silverback Films will collaborate with the World Wildlife Fund over the next four years on the huge undertaking, which is scheduled to premiere in 2019. To be shot in Ultra HD 4K format, the series promises to present never-before-filmed settings across the globe. [Variety]
Neil deGrasse Tyson’s StarTalk hasn’t even premiered yet, but National Geographic Channel is already giving it a second season. The network announced the news today at a press briefing and confirmed that both seasons of the new latenight talk show will consist of ten hour-long episodes. A spinoff of Tyson’s national radio program, the series combining science and pop culture premieres April 20 with guest George Takei (Star Trek). [Variety]
It seems the Wicked Witch isn’t dead after all. Eight months after canceling Emerald City, NBC has brought its re-imaginging of Wizard of Oz back to life with a straight-to-series order. David Schulner (Do No Harm) will write, executive produce and serve as showrunner on the 10-episode drama, taking over for Josh Friedman (Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles), who left last year due to creative differences. The project follows 20-year-old Dorothy Gale and her K9 police dog as they’re transported to a mystical land of competing kingdoms, lethal warriors, dark magic and a bloody battle for supremacy. [THR]
Geeks Who Drink is no longer just a bar game, it’s now also a game show on Syfy. Heroes Reborn star and Chuck alum Zachary Levi will executive produce and host the weekly series where two teams of trivia geeks battle it out for prizes and a space on the leaderboard. They’ll answer questions in topics ranging from pop culture to science fiction. [Deadline]
Adina Porter is moving to a time and place even worse than the one where she plays Indra on The 100. She’s landed a recurring role on Underground, WGN America’s pre-Civil War drama about the Underground Railroad. The series follows a group of slaves who escape from a Georgia plantation to travel 600 miles to freedom. Porter will play Pearly Mae, a strong wife and mother who first gives voice to the song in which the runners will find clues to help guide them to freedom. Porter also starred as Lettie Mae Thompson on True Blood for seven seasons. [Deadline]