After Fox’s Rent underperforms, NBC scraps a staging of Hair as the format loses luster over high costs (up to $20 million) and low rerun value: “It’s a very tough business.”
A flurry of programming announcements is signaling a new direction for some of music’s big names — Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj and the rapper 50 Cent among them — who are driving TV projects they want to see made and, in some cases, made about them. TV execs say music-based shows have multigenerational appeal.
A year from now, can NBC’s follow-up strike a similar chord? What manner of star could equal Underwood’s drawing power? And, maybe most important of all, is there any other musical that could grab the attention The Sound of Music automatically claims? Although NBC isn’t saying which musicals may be under consideration, it’s easy enough to play a guessing game.
