Kevin Williamson, the queer creator behind the “Scream” and “I Know What You Did Last Summer” franchises, has just signed a multi-project development deal with Universal Television. Among the series in the pipeline are an adaptation of the Ruth Ware novel, “The It Girl”; a version of David Fincher’s film, “The Game”; an original project called “The Waterfront,” and, perhaps most excitingly, a reboot/reimagining of the Alfred Hitchcock classic, “Rear Window.” One of the most beloved thrillers in film history, it’s the story of a man who, in the process of observing the neighbors in his apartment building, witnesses actions that make him think a murder has occurred. The 1954 film starred Jimmy Stewart and Grace Kelly (and gay acting legend Raymond Burr as the suspiciously behaving neighbor) and, while no actors have signed on for the remake yet, this is absolutely going to be the kind of project actors will beg their agents to get them into the casting conversation. More on this one as it moves forward.
‘The Uglies’ look good for Netflix
In a future dystopia, society will impost cosmetic surgery at age 16 for anyone not attractive enough to keep living, and those who reject their turn to become Pretty-with-a-capital-P wind up running away. That’s the premise of “The Uglies,” a new film from McG, based on the novel “Uglies,” by Scott Westerfeld. Coming this year to Netflix, the movie stars Joey King (who also produced) as a teenage girl who runs away to save a friend who rejected the surgery, and whose own life is changed by the process. Co-starring Keith Powers (“The New Edition Story”) and queer superstar Laverne Cox, it has the feeling of “Logan’s Run” for a new generation — in that one they killed you at age 30 no matter how hot you were — and we’re very much up for a dystopian thriller where everyday human traits like crooked teeth become the deadliest liabilities. It’s already wrapped, so we can’t give advice to the filmmakers at this point, but we’re really hoping for some wild, “Botched”-level characters populating the scenery.
‘No Good Deed’ adds more queer cast members to the lease
We already reported on lesbian TV creator Liz Feldman’s (“Dead to Me”) latest comedy project for Netflix, “No Good Deed,” starring Abbi Jacobson, Ray Romano, Lisa Kudrow, Teyonah Parris and Linda Cardellini. The eight-episode series revolves around multiple people vying to buy the same piece of property in the white-hot (meaning if you have to ask you can’t afford it) Los Angeles housing market. Now the cast has expanded to include gay comic actor Matt Rogers (“Fire Island”) and “The L Word” icon Kate Moennig. That means more queer bidders to battle over this fictional house and we are already rooting for them to crush the competition. If you’ve seen