Jodie Comer to star in HBO's The Chain / PBS’ A Capital Fourth is moving to July 3 / Tulsa King casts an ex-gangster
PLUS: Peter Jackson says he began working with Stephen Colbert on a new Lord of the Rings movie before The Late Show cancelation.
Jodie Comer to star in Damon Lindelof HBO thriller series The Chain
The Killing Eve Emmy winner will play Rachel, a suburban mother “who must consider the unthinkable when her daughter is kidnapped,” in Lindelof’s HBO limited series based on the bestselling book The Chain by Adrian McKinty that has been described as “Jaws for parents.” Lindelof, Carly Wray and Breannah Gibson came up with the pilot story for The Chain, with Lindelof and Wray writing the pilot script. “From the moment I heard the wild and original premise of Adrian’s book, I was shocked, surprised and angry I hadn’t thought of it myself,” Lindelof, who was responsible for HBO’s Watchmen and The Leftovers, said when The Chain was picked up to series in January. “I’ve always wanted to try to adapt a great thriller and this one has all the dark, weird, exhilarating touches that fire up my imagination.”
PBS’ A Capital Fourth is moving to July 3 to kick off a weekend celebrations for the 250th anniversary of the United States
A Capitol Fourth: 250th Weekend Celebration will air the night of July 3, instead of the Fourth of July. It will feature Trace Adkins unveiling a new song, American Made, celebrating patriotism and achievements of Americans.
Peter Jackson says he began working with Stephen Colbert on a new Lord of the Rings movie before The Late Show cancelation
“He phoned me up a year ago — before he knew his show was going to finish — and said, ‘I don’t know if you’re interesting, but I’ve got an idea for a Tolkien movie based on the books that I think would be really good,’” Jackson told Variety at the Cannes Film Festival, where the director was honored with a Palme d’Or on opening night. Jackson said Colbert even flew to New Zealand to work with his longtime collaborator Philippa Boyens. Jackson added that Colbert having the free time to focus on the movie is a major benefit. “I think Steven’s actually really happy — I think it helped him process (something that) what was rather shocking,” he said. “So it was like, okay, one day he’s going to be a late night talk show host, and the next day he’s going to be a Tolkien scriptwriter.”
Tulsa King casts actor Richie Stephens, a real-life ex-gangster
Stephens will play English Dan, a rival supplier and mid-level crime boss, on Season 4 of the Paramount+ crime drama. “Stephens has been open about his previous life involved with drug trafficking, kidnapping, and robbery,” says Deadline’s Max Goldbart. “He is the author of The Gangster’s Guide to Sobriety, which he co-wrote with Silicon Valley creators John Altschuler and Dave Krinsky. The book is currently being developed for TV with Altschuler, Krinsky and Wild Atlantic Pictures.”
TLC announces Little Singles, a relationship reality show starring little people
Premiering June 15, Little Singles follows “a vibrant, tight-knit group of little people as they date, connect, and build community,” per Deadline. “Reuniting in Palm Springs after first meeting at a Little People convention, and maintaining close friendships ever since, the group embarks on a shared getaway where they can live freely, without judgment, and where friendships deepen, and sparks fly.” Watch the trailer.
AMC+ lands 13 seasons of Doctor Who
The 150-plus episodes that aired from 2005 through 2022 — before the BBC’s Doctor Who collaboration with Disney — will feature the Time Lord as played by Christopher Eccleston, David Tennant, Matt Smith, Peter Capaldi and Jodie Whittaker. The Doctor Who episodes join AMC+ on June 11.
Check out a chart of The Pitt’s Season 2 viewership explosion
“It’s no secret that The Pitt‘s second season was much bigger than its first — HBO Max‘s internal data shows the series averaging 15.4 million viewers over its first 90 days, more than 50 percent higher than the first season in 2025,” says The Hollywood Reporter’s Rick Porter. “The show recorded more than a billion viewing minutes in Nielsen’s streaming ratings 12 times in its first 14 weeks this season. The year-to-year growth is even more pronounced in some new data from Nielsen — which shows every week of The Pitt’s second season outpacing its first, and sometimes more than doubling the same week from season one.” ALSO: Noah Wyle watches Isa Briones perform in Just in Time on Broadway.
BET is getting into the microdrama business
The Paramount cable brand is teaming with microdrama company aTwist to develop microdramas. aTwist was founded by former ABC Entertainment president Lloyd Braun, ex-Showtime president Jana Winograde and former NBC Universal Television and Streaming entertainment chairwoman Susan Rovner. “The deal essentially provides a declining cable asset with low-cost programming while offering aTwist projects greater visibility and an additional revenue window,” says The Hollywood Reporter’s Katie Kilkenny. “Through the partnership, BET and aTwist will produce series that can be viewed on cable television as well as on aTwist’s forthcoming mobile app, which is set to launch this summer. Each project will have a first-run window on the BET channel before moving to the aTwist app.”
Rooster is HBO’s biggest freshman comedy since Hung and Sex and the City
The Steve Carell-led comedy from Bill Lawrence and Matt Tarses has averaged 6.5 million viewers.
Virgin River adds Mitchell Slaggert
The Landman and The Sex Lives of College Girls alum is joining Season 8 of the Netflix drama series as Eddie, “a charismatic EMT who may surprise you by fixing your soul along with your body,” per Deadline. “He’s a laidback charmer who never pictured himself in a small town, but with natural curiosity and a zeal for life, Eddie is going to explore all that Virgin River has to offer.”
Foo Fighters bookends their long association with The Late Show
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert has posted a video of Foo Fighters performing a medley of “This Is a Call” and “Everlong” from their May 4 visit. Foo Fighters made their late-night TV debut in 1995 on David Letterman’s Late Show. They have performed “Everlong,” Letterman’s favorite song, three times for Dave, including to wrap up his final show in 2015.
Nickelodeon renews PAW Patrol and spinoff Rubble & Crew for two more seasons
Both children’s shows have been picked up for 26 more episodes, bringing PAW Patrol to Season 15 and Rubble & Crew to Season 6.
Tom Segura’s Bad Thoughts unveils its Season 2 trailer
The comedian’s dark and twisted comedic series returns to Netflix on May 24.
The Oval gets a premiere date and trailer for its seventh and final season
The Tyler Perry BET political drama returns May 20.
Netflix gets out of the cold in the trailer for Outlast: The Jungle
The survival reality competition series, which was set in the Alaskan wilderness in Season 1, is moving to the Panamanian jungle for Season 2, premiering June 10.
Watch the trailer for My Adventures With Superman Season 3
The Adult Swim series returns June 13 with evil Cyborg Superman and young hero Superboy.