Peacock struts its comedies
As streaming networks battle for viewers, Peacock’s special weapon is comedy.
It has lots of it – new and old, good and bad, silly and satirical. And it has just added more.
In Television Critics Association sessions Monday (Aug. 10), the network announced two topical shows (with Larry Wilmore and Amber Ruffin, who’s shown here during a regular gig with Seth Meyer), an action-comedy (with Will Forte) and a musical-comedy-drama (Tina Fey producing and Sara Bareilles starring). It also discussed three previously announced shows.
And it broke a tradition of sorts: Networks often base series on movies that were box-office hits; Peacock is going the opposite way, ordering eight episodes of Forte’s “MacGruber.” In 2010, it made only $9.3 million in the U.S. … putting it $400 million behind “Avatar” or “Toy Story 3.” Read more…