V, No Ordinary Family, The Event Cancelled; Once Upon A Time Greenlit

Plus, news of two Buffy cast members in new non-telefantasy show

US TV network ABC has axed both V (after two seasons) and No Ordinary Family (after just one season) after both shows failed to find decent-sized audiences. Neither cancellation is much of a surprise, to be honest, though both ended with gamechanging episodes that would have made their next seasons intriguing, at least. Ah well.

Meanwhile, NBC has axed The Event , but that may not be the end of the show. According to Deadline , “Talks are underway with at least one distribution partner to take over the serialised drama. The Event executive producer Steve Stark wouldn't comment, but I hear new original programming player Netflix’s name tossed around. Word is that there has been interest from several cable and digital entities. Stark said that they are exploring the opportunities with the ‘full support’ of the studio, UMS. ‘NBC has been an amazing partner, it launched the show beautifully,’ he said. Added creator Nick Wauters: ‘We have a dedicated fan base, and we promised them we will deliver one way or another and will continue to tell our stories.’”

It’s not all bad news, though. ABC has given a series order to the fairytale-themed drama Once Upon A Time , showrun by former Lost producers Edward Kitsis & Adam Horowitz, which will feature (we jest not) Robert Carlyle as Rumplestiltskin. So, that’s two fairytale dramas next season; NBC has already greenlit Grimm .

Finally, two former Buffy actors have landed themselves new starring roles, not in telefantasy shows, sure, but we thought you might be interested, especially as one may have knock-on effects.

Sarah Michelle will star in Ringer as Bridget, a young woman on the run from the mob who thinks she’ll find safe harbour by posing as her wealthy twin, Siobhan. Thing is, sis has a bounty on her life as well! The pilot was ordered by CBS, but the series will actually end up on The CW.

And Anthony Stewart Head will star in NBC’s Free Agents , a US remake of the Channel 4 sitcom. Head was also in the UK version but in a strange parallel of the show Episodes , his co-star Stephen Mangan won't be in the US version. Does this, we wonder, mean that Head might have a reduced role in series four of Merlin as a result? Certainly the way his story was going on that show would seem to suggest he may not be so prominent in the future.