Verve Makes Election Day Paid Holiday for All Employees (EXCLUSIVE)

Joe Otterson TV ReporterIssa Rae’s ColorCreative is set to produce a dramedy in development at Quibi from writer Brittani Nichols, Variety has learned exclusively.Titled “Toothbrush,” the series follows Rae. A queer woman living on the east side of Los Angeles, she struggles to find balance and boundaries with Emma, her ex-girlfriend turned best friend whose apartment she finds herself staying over more often than not.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterAmazon is not moving forward on its series about conquistador Hernan Cortes after the show was forced to shut down production due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Variety has confirmed.The Spanish-language series, which starred Javier Bardem as Cortes, was intended to be a big-budget miniseries for the streamer comprised of four episodes.

blog post posted Thursday, said it will be taking a number of steps to safeguard the election in the months ahead, including removing posts claiming people will get COVID-19 if they decide to vote in-person.

Fortune. While this initiative does not include corporate Old Navy employees, the company has reportedly declared November 3 as a “no meetings day” to allow all employees the necessary time to vote, joining brands like , , and Walmart with similar policies.By By By By Authentic, Accessible, RelevantMore from GlamourSee More Stories© 2020 Condé Nast. All rights reserved.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter“Power” fans eagerly awaiting the continuing adventures of Tommy Egan just caught a break. Variety has learned that the Starz spinoff series built around the character will no longer be the last “Power” spinoff to debut.When Starz originally ordered the four “Power” spinoffs earlier this year, the Tommy spinoff was slated to debut last and was titled “Power Book V: Force.” Instead, it has been redubbed “Power Book IV: Force,” meaning it will debut after the prequel

With Election Day looming on Tuesday, Nov. 3, entertainment companies are moving to make it a paid company holiday.It’s currently a civic holiday only in certain states (including New York), while in California employees without sufficient time to vote must be allowed twohours off with pay.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterThe CW is developing a drama series that hails from Damon Wayans Jr.’s Two Shakes Entertainment, Variety has learned exclusively.The project is titled “The Pretenders.” In the show, a seemingly normal suburban family is hiding a big secret: they’re actually individual assets in the Witness Protection Program, placed together to provide safe cover for three of the assets who are unrelated minors.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterJohn Harlan Kim has been upped to series regular on the upcoming fourth season of “9-1-1-” at Fox, Variety has learned exclusively.Kim recurred last season as Albert Kim, the younger half-brother of firefighter Howie “Chimney” Kim (Kenneth Choi). The brothers had never met until Albert surprised Chimey by showing up on his doorstep from Korea.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterM88, the new full-service management firm launched by former WME partner Phillip Sun and Macro founder and CEO Charles D. King, has lined up an all-star list of initial clients.Variety has learned exclusively that the following people are signing with M88 for representation: Idris Elba, Donald Glover, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Naomi Scott, Sullivan Stapelton, Caleb McLaughlin, Carmen Cuba, and Riz Ahemd.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter“Steve on Watch,” comedian Steve Harvey’s daily Facebook Watch talk show, has been renewed for a second season, Variety has learned exclusively.The second season will premiere on Sept. 14.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterThe cast and creators of “The West Wing” are reuniting to perform together for the first time in nearly two decades in a special set at HBO Max, Variety has learned.“A West Wing Special to Benefit When We All Vote” will debut on the streamer this fall. It will feature a theatrical staging of the “Hartsfield’s Landing” episode from the show’s third season and will be shot at the Orpheum Theater in Los Angeles in early October.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter“Penny Dreadful: City of Angels” has been canceled at Showtime. The final episode of the show’s first and only season aired on June 28.“Showtime has decided not to move forward with another season of ‘Penny Dreadful: City of Angels,'” Showtime said in a statement.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterCarlos Portugal is developing the one-hour mystery drama “Miss NG” at HBO Max, Variety has learned exclusively.The series is set in the small town of Nuevo Guerrero, where nothing is more important than the annual Miss Nuevo Guerrero beauty pageant. But when last year’s winner goes missing, her former best friend, her arch-rival and her half-sister all enter the upcoming pageant.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterFamilystyle has entered into a first-look deal with Entertainment 360, the joint venture between MRC Television and Management 360, Variety has learned exclusively.Familystyle is the production company run by Karyn Kusama, Matt Manfredi, and Phil Hay. The first project being developed under the deal is the series “The Occupant.” Kusama is attached to direct with Manfredi and Hay attached to write.

Former Love Island winner Dani Dyer has shared two amazingly clear ultrasound pictures of her unborn baby.The excited mum-to-be, 24, took to social media to share the pictures where you can clearly see the baby's head, nose, mouth, upper-body and an arm, while in the second one you can also see a hand. Posting the first black-and-white image on her Instagram Stories for her 3.3million followers to see, she captioned the first snap: "Makes our day seeing you," and "Love you".