truTV Announces 2018 Greenlights, Premiere Dates & Guest Stars For Its Comedic Programming Slate
It's Day 8 of the TCA Winter Press Tour... Let's get into it:
- The cable comedy network announced the guest stars for its upcoming comedic anthology series Bobcat Goldthwait's Misfits & Monsters, including Bridget Everett, Seth Green and Danny Pudi, among others. The eight-episodes premiere in summer 2018 and you can watch a first look at http://bit.ly/2mswtRN;
- The network greenlit a new pilot, Tacoma FD (wt), from Kevin Heffernan and Steve Lemme, co-creators and stars of Super Troopers, and gave a 16-episode first season order to Paid Off with Michael Torpey, the only comedy gameshow that tackles student debt;
- Finally, premiere dates and guest stars were announced for Talk Show the Game Show, Adam Ruins Everything and The Chris Gethard Show, all of which will return with new episodes this spring.
On the heels of a breakout year in 2017, truTV today announced 2018 greenlights, premiere dates and guest stars ahead of the network’s panel at the Television Critics Association Press Tour. Being paneled today at TCA, Bobcat Goldthwait’s Misfits & Monsters will welcome a crop of talented guest stars to the prolific director’s scripted comedic anthology series. Bringing viewers twisted, darkly witty satirical tales, each episode mashes up two distinct genres and features characters who are misfits, monsters, or both, but with unexpected and fantastical turns. Joining Bobcat on today’s panel are guest stars Bridget Everett, Seth Green and Danny Pudi with additional guest stars included in the description below. The show premieres in summer 2018 and a first look is available at http://bit.ly/2mswtRN.
The network also announced the series greenlight of Paid Off with Michael Torpey, a half-hour comedy game show where contestants compete for the chance to have their student debt paid off. In addition, truTV has ordered to pilot Tacoma FD (wt), a half-hour scripted comedy from Kevin Heffernan and Steve Lemme, co-creators and stars of the cult classic film, Super Troopers.
Finally, truTV unveiled guest stars for returning series Talk Show the Game Show and premiere dates for Adam Ruins Everything and The Chris Gethard Show, which will return in spring 2018.
2017 marked the third full year since truTV’s emergence as a comedy brand, and the network once again delivered on its promise to provide a wholly-original programming slate of premium comedic content with creators at the center. Driving this huge momentum and sustained ratings growth – truTV is one of only two networks with two consecutive years of growth in prime among adults 18-49 – is a mix of scripted, non-scripted and hybrid projects including: the breakout freshman series At Home with Amy Sedaris and I’m Sorry; one of cable’s top 5 original comedies, Impractical Jokers; the inventive investigative comedy Adam Ruins Everything; and two series bringing the fun and spontaneity back into late-night, The Chris Gethard Show and Talk Show the Game Show, among others.
Below is a complete rundown of truTV’s latest programming moves.
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Development:
Tacoma FD (wt)
Scripted Pilot Order
With their long-anticipated film Super Troopers 2 debuting this spring, co-creator and stars Kevin Heffernan and Steve Lemme are putting on new uniforms in Tacoma FD, a new half-hour comedy set in a firehouse in the wettest city in America. Light on blazes that need extinguishing, they are basically fire fighters who are always ready to fight fires… but in this wet city, they also have to fight their own boredom.
The series is co-created and executive produced by Heffernan and Lemme alongside David Miner and Greg Walter from 3 Arts Entertainment and Kyle Clark from Silverscreen Pictures.
New Series:
Paid Off with Michael Torpey
16-Episode New Series Greenlight Airing Summer 2018
The student loan crisis is ridiculous, so comedian Michael Torpey (Orange is the New Black) is solving it in the most ridiculous way possible, a comedy game show. Paid Off with Michael Torpey gives three lucky college grads – saddled with student debt – the chance to test the depth of their degrees with fun, fast paced trivia questions. In the end, one lucky winner will get the chance to have their student debt paid off.
The series is co-created by Torpey and Cowboy Bear Ninja, who also produces. Michael Melamedoff and Adrian Selkowitz serve as executive producers for Cowboy Bear Ninja alongside executive producers Torpey, Ethan Berlin and Leigh Hampton.
Bobcat Goldthwait’s Misfits & Monsters
8-Episode Scripted Anthology Series Premieres Summer 2018
From the Sundance award-winning writer-director, Bobcat Goldthwait’s Misfits & Monsters is a genre-hopping scripted anthology comedy series that examines universal truths in society and pop culture and turns them inside out in completely unique and entertainingly absurd ways. Each standalone episode delivers a subversive satire of the current world we live in and exploits the awkwardness of its flawed characters to tell socially-relevant stories with imaginative twists.
Watch a first look at http://bit.ly/2mswtRN.
Guest stars in the 8-episode, half-hour series include Michael Ian Black, Bridget Everett, Dave Foley, Seth Green, Melissa Joan Hart, David Koechner, Samm Levine, Joel Murray, Dave Pasquesi and Danny Pudi.
The series is produced by Left/Right with Goldthwait, Banks Tarver, Ken Druckerman, Olivia Wingate and Michele Armour serving as executive producers.
Returning Series:
Talk Show the Game Show
Back-to-Back Episodes Premiere Thursday, February 1 (10:30pm and 11:00pm ET/PT)
Comedian Guy Branum (The Mindy Project, Chelsea Lately) is back with 16 all-new first season episodes of his outrageous mashup comedy series Talk Show the Game Show. Based on Branum’s popular live comedy show, the series is a boisterous combination of two beloved television formats that pits celebrities against each other to vie for the title of “Best Guest of the Night.” Each week, guests square off, racking up points for the name drops, project plugs and political grandstanding that are the bread and butter of every talk show. The difference is that on this show it literally counts!
Also returning this year are the series’ comedic panel of judges including Emmy® Award-winning writer and host of the popular podcast “My Favorite Murder,” Karen Kilgariff, and author and journalist Casey Schreiner. The judges give the real-time reactions we all want during a talk show appearance: roasting mediocre guests and applauding what the best guests did right. Celebrity contestants and matchups featured in these new episodes include:
- Melissa Joan Hart; Caroline Rhea; Jared Logan
- Colin Quinn; Charles Barkley; Marissa Jaret Winokur
- Fortune Feimster; Reggie Bush; Nick Thune
- Cheryl Hines; Ron Funches; Michael Kosta
- Billy Eichner; David Koechner; Lauren Lapkus
- Tate Donovan; Kym Whitley; Cristela Alonzo
- Andy Richter; Sasheer Zamata; Nadia G
- Cynthia Bailey; Cole Escola; Andy Kindler
- Anders Holm; Lennon Parham, Seaton Smith
- Loni Love; Andy Bell; Nicole Sullivan
- Heather Dubrow; Tone Bell; Maribeth Monroe
- Wanda Sykes; Lauren Ash; Nico Santos
- Ileana Douglas; Arturo Castro; Alec Mapa
- Dave Holmes; Maria Thayer; Eliza Skinner
- Natasha Leggero; Cam'ron; Wilson Cruz
- Jill Kargman; Judah Friedlander; Joel Kim Booster
Following the two-episode premiere at 10:30pm on February 1, Talk Show the Game Show moves to its regularly scheduled 11:00pm timeslot beginning February 8.
The series is produced by Push It Productions with Wanda Sykes, Page Hurwitz, Anna Wenger and Branum serving as executive producers.
The Chris Gethard Show
New Live Episodes Premiere Tuesday, March 20 at 11:00pm ET
Comedian Chris Gethard brings his interactive, off-the-rails talk show live to truTV, stretching the limits of what is possible on late-night television. Each week, Gethard walks a tightrope between chaos and control, attempting (and often failing) to wrangle celebrity guests, a cast of comedy improvisers, a studio audience and an electric fan-base of callers, all without a safety net. Throughout its rise from a live stage show to a humble NYC public access show to a beloved and critically-lauded TV series, The Chris Gethard Show has attracted a host of A-list celebrity guests including Method Man, Ellie Kemper, P. Diddy, John Oliver, Paul Giamatti and more.
The series is produced by Funny Or Die. Zach Galifianakis, Will Ferrell, Adam McKay, Owen Burke, JD Amato, Brian Stern and Gethard serve as executive producers.
Adam Ruins Everything
6 Animated Episodes Premiere Tuesday, March 20 at 10:00pm
Adam Conover is back to “Reanimate History” in six all-new episodes that take on well-known historical topics and reveal the surprising truths and unsung heroes behind the history we’ve been taught. Questioning the universally-accepted narratives surrounding the American Revolution, Native Americans, the Cold War, the Ancient World, the Renaissance and the Turn of the 20th Century, an animated Adam will question if we do really know all the facts and give viewers information that will make them see the world in a whole new way.
Two back-to-back episodes premiere at 10:00pm on March 20 and the series moves to its regularly scheduled 10:30pm timeslot beginning March 27.
Created by Conover, the series is produced by Big Breakfast, an Electus company, with Conover, Sam Reich, Spencer Griffin, Jon Cohen, Jon Wolf, and Greg Tuculescu serving as executive producers.
About truTV
truTV is the home for original, creator-driven comedy series with a distinct point of view. With millions of engaged fans across linear, digital and social channels, the cable network features a growing roster of critically acclaimed and fan-favorite premium scripted, non-scripted and hybrid series, such as Adam Ruins Everything, At Home with Amy Sedaris, I’m Sorry, Impractical Jokers, Paid Off with Michael Torpey, Tacoma FD, The Carbonaro Effect, and more. As a division of WarnerMedia, truTV is also a partner in airing the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship each year.
WarnerMedia is a leading media and entertainment company that creates and distributes premium and popular content from a diverse array of talented storytellers and journalists to global audiences through its consumer brands including: HBO, Warner Bros., TNT, TBS, truTV, CNN, DC Entertainment, New Line, Cartoon Network, Adult Swim, Turner Classic Movies and others.