ONTD

11:40 pm - 04/24/2012

Hoping Smash will get better next season? Well you can give up on all of that now


NBC's Smash is about to get a Gossip Girl injection.

The NBC drama has tapped Gossip Girl showrunner Josh Safran to replace creator Theresa Rebeck on the musical drama about the staging of a Broadway production, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.

Safran, who has been with the CW staple as an executive producer and co-EP and consulting producer since 2008, when Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage brought him into the Gossip Girl fold.

Safran, who currently serves as showrunner on the CW series, replaces Rebeck, who stepped down from the helm of the freshman NBC series in March. She's expected to remain a writer and executive producer on Smash's recently announced second season.

Rebeck, who wrote the first three episodes of the series' freshman run, is an established Broadway playwright, andSmash's lead character, Julia (Debra Messing), is based on her. She has been involved with the series from its inception, adapting the script initially for Showtime and then later at NBC. The shift to broadcast entailed a rethinking of the drama, including such elements as who initially would win the prized role as Marilyn in the pilot.

Safran's addition comes as viewers of both series have been vocal about the story lines on both series.

Despite early critical praise, Smash has been criticized of late for its focus on the personal lives of the characters attached to the production, including Julia's marriage and subsequent affair. For its part, Gossip Girl viewers have been vocal about its skewed focus and on Blair and Dan.

While NBC has already picked up Smash for a second season, the CW has been mum about the future of Gossip Girl. Safran is repped by UTA.


http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/smash-gossip-girl-josh-safran-showrunner-315983
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hollymarchosias 25th-Apr-2012 04:43 am (UTC)
can't stop laughing
ennifer_jay 25th-Apr-2012 04:43 am (UTC)
ugh
acousticmuse 25th-Apr-2012 04:43 am (UTC)
yiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiikes
redaodai 25th-Apr-2012 04:43 am (UTC)
I'm more concerned about the kid who plays the son. Lordt, his acting kills me.

givethesignal 25th-Apr-2012 04:51 am (UTC)
To be fair he's also just fucking horribly written
redaodai 25th-Apr-2012 04:54 am (UTC)
I feel like half the cast has bad writing, but most of them make it somewhat tolerable. That kid, though. I have no idea what's going on there. I hope someone writes him off to boarding school very soon.
_teardust 25th-Apr-2012 04:57 am (UTC)
Oh God, THIS. He is so awful.
delusive 25th-Apr-2012 05:06 am (UTC)
He's way too old to be playing a 16-17 year old. He's like 33, I swear.
the_dah 25th-Apr-2012 05:18 am (UTC)
oh my god i was crying when he was talking about how pissed he was when grace was thinking about not doing the adoption. YOU TOLD ME MY SISTER WAS IN CHINA.
alkalinecupcake 25th-Apr-2012 09:31 am (UTC)
He can always go off to college somewhere FARRRRRR away next season or sometime soon! I really hope so.
the_pinkdress 25th-Apr-2012 01:46 pm (UTC)
I live for his scenes now. "DAD. COME ON."

The character itself is so annoying though. Like his parents have been over the top supportive to him during the whole ~separation~ thing but it's all about him and how ~torn up he is about it.
greenfairy_87 25th-Apr-2012 04:43 am (UTC)
Oh great, yet another shining example of a female's creation being taken over by a man.
ms_mmelissa 25th-Apr-2012 03:36 pm (UTC)
MTE
oshunanat 25th-Apr-2012 04:44 am (UTC)
See I thought the announcement that Ellis was going to be even MORE obnoxious next season was a good indication that it was going to suck. This just confirms it.
advo 25th-Apr-2012 12:47 pm (UTC)
How is it even possible for Ellis to be more obnoxious?!!!
isntdaveone 25th-Apr-2012 04:44 am (UTC)
the show already sucks and it's beyond boring.

a little CW might make it bearable.

Edited at 2012-04-25 04:45 am (UTC)
dancedallnight 25th-Apr-2012 04:44 am (UTC)
ok so I guess I'll continue to not watch this show
msweetie913 25th-Apr-2012 04:47 am (UTC)
mte
enid_keaner 25th-Apr-2012 04:50 am (UTC)
MTE
hateistoodark 25th-Apr-2012 05:24 am (UTC)
mte
candycheeks 25th-Apr-2012 05:50 am (UTC)
same
wits 25th-Apr-2012 06:23 am (UTC)
lmao mte
chuk_is_dazzled 25th-Apr-2012 06:44 am (UTC)
lol ikr
_xxtom 25th-Apr-2012 07:51 am (UTC)
lol mte
firecracker_sj 25th-Apr-2012 09:22 am (UTC)
lol this
sweet_honesty 25th-Apr-2012 04:47 pm (UTC)
lol yup
solitune 25th-Apr-2012 10:28 pm (UTC)
I'M SAYIN. I can't believe it's still on the air. I have to sit through those damn commercials every time I watch The Voice and they ALWAYS made me cringe.
anniemann101 26th-Apr-2012 03:23 pm (UTC)
i watched one episode. you speak truth as i read this news and post. thank you for your comment because it's exactly what i was thinking. i love that so many people agree haha
sheinhardt 25th-Apr-2012 04:47 am (UTC)
ugh but this show is already awful :( i tried it, but i stopped watching like 5 episodes in. i KIND OF want to catch up, but from the promos i've seen, it doesn't seem a lot has happened.
syzygy09 25th-Apr-2012 04:48 am (UTC)
lol, ok. It's not like it's going to get any worse.
chopmeup 25th-Apr-2012 04:48 am (UTC)
only watching this show so i can a) be even more jealous of megan hilty for being fawless and b) imagine that jack davenport is in my bed every night other than that this show has no reason to be on the air anymore
amber_protocol 25th-Apr-2012 04:48 am (UTC)
lmao-ing at the thought of Safran saving the show. These idiots have seen GG, right? What do you expect from NBC tho, lbr.
quiet_fractures 25th-Apr-2012 04:52 am (UTC)
Well Dan and Blair saved GG for me. So at least he got something right.
amber_protocol 25th-Apr-2012 04:54 am (UTC)
Safran doesn't write Dair though, the magical intern does so we can't give him credit for that.

Srsly though, ofc I agree that Dair is flawless but I'm assuming NBC wants the whole show to be good, not just one pairing lol.
classicdramatic 25th-Apr-2012 04:59 am (UTC)
roflmao you're comment totes reminded me of this ... save the date because you love us XOXO

Edited at 2012-04-25 06:42 pm (UTC)
woahjen 25th-Apr-2012 04:49 am (UTC)
that Bollywood number last night....I couldn't deal. And Dev singing...no thanks!
oumeoumai 25th-Apr-2012 06:45 am (UTC)
He's a musical theater actor though, on the West End isn't he?
tuluum 26th-Apr-2012 06:20 am (UTC)
yup
xlovexlessxtyx 25th-Apr-2012 09:54 am (UTC)
shade bitch.

i loved it.
littlebones 25th-Apr-2012 03:48 pm (UTC)
i wonder if he was insulted that they suggested that to him, bc yikes.
anijen21 25th-Apr-2012 06:33 pm (UTC)
lol I loved it, Dev did better than Katherine McBoring in a LANDSLIDE
tuluum 26th-Apr-2012 06:20 am (UTC)
um his specialty is musical theater though. i loved it *shrug*
enid_keaner 25th-Apr-2012 04:49 am (UTC)
I wonder why she stepped down?
chopmeup 25th-Apr-2012 04:50 am (UTC)
probably didn't want to take full responsibility for its inevitable demise
enid_keaner 25th-Apr-2012 04:51 am (UTC)
In that case, good plan.
dianora2 25th-Apr-2012 05:08 am (UTC)
I thought she got fired.
anabanana0714 25th-Apr-2012 06:40 am (UTC)
They didn't give her much creative control, despite being the showrunner. Jon Robin Baitz left Brothers & Sisters for the same reason. Playwright's don't handle network politics very well. That's the funny thing about Hollywood--you can be a Pulitzer-finalist playwright, yet the networks can't trust you with a TV show, but write the script for a Britney Spears movie (Shonda Rimes), and they pretty much give you free reign. I refuse to believe that the crap I'm watching is the work of Theresa Rebeck; none of it sounds like her at all.
joaniemaloney 25th-Apr-2012 04:50 am (UTC)
tbh I haven't heard of good things about this show.
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