‘Girlfriend In A Coma’ Back On Life Support, Pilot Delayed Until June
Girlfriend in a Coma has experienced further pilot delays, this time as part of a mutual decision between show creator Liz Brixius and producers Universal TV and Wolf Films, Deadline reported.
The decision will set filming back until June, moving it off-season from the September 2013 premiere that was previously anticipated.
The pilot was said to be an exciting one for NBC, but earlier this month, star Christina Ricci left following a table read.
Ricci has not released a statement as to whether there were creative differences involved, but it could be that she’s treading a little more carefully after her last television endeavor.
In 2012, she starred on ABC’s Pan Am, which only ran 14 episodes before crashing into cancellation with a drop-off from 11 million viewers to 2.57 million from the premiere to the final episode, respectively.
In Girlfriend in a Coma, Ricci would have played Karen, a 33-year old mother of one, who wakes up after close to two decades in a coma to find that she has a 17-year-old daughter (played by Miranda Cosgrove of iCarly fame).
Daniel Stern (Home Alone) and Ann Cusack (A League of Their Own) also star as Karen’s parents, who have raised the child during their daughter’s absence.
The comedy was announced in February 2013 and is based on Douglas Coupland’s novel of the same name from 1998.
The Hollywood Reporter noted that after seeing other actresses audition, there wasn’t enough time to find a suitable replacement for Ricci, so Brixius and producers agreed to wait.
It’s easy to see why NBC wouldn’t want to rush it. The network has struggled to find original programming to pull itself out of a ratings slump. Executives have already approved a Chicago Fire spinoff before the end of the firefighter drama’s first season.
Spinoffs usually don’t come until well into a show’s second season, but the series has been one of the few bright spots, and it’s clear the network feels that they’re one star away from having another hit with Girlfriend in a Coma.
Are you disappointed we probably won’t be seeing a pilot this fall?
[Image via cinemafestival / Shutterstock.com]
