NBC Officially Pulls The Plug On 'Mockingbird Lane'

It was a long, well fought two-year journey, but NBC has officially decided that it's the end of the road for Mockingbird Lane, their modern day reboot of The Munsters. 

Following production and casting delays, the show did not get a series pick up for the 2012 fall season. Despite a last chance on October 26th when the network aired the pilot at 8pm during a Halloween themed block of shows, 5.4 million viewers and a 1.5 rating were ultimately not enough to keep the show alive according to NBC brass.

The lavish high-concept pilot, which reportedly cost $10 million, had all the familiar trappings you would expect from The Munsters, including a subtle revamped theme and numerous clever nods to the original '60s black and white comedy. Directed by Bryan Singer (X-Men, X2, Superman Returns), produced by Bryan Fuller (Pushing Daises, Dead Like Me) the proposed series starred Jerry O'Connell as Herman, Portia de Rossi as Lily, Eddie Izzard as Grandpa and Charity Wakefield as Marilyn.

Fuller broke the news to fans on his Twitter account, thanking them for all their support.

I tweet with a heavy heart. NBC not moving forward with #MockingbirdLane. From producers and cast, thank you all for enthusiasm and support.
— Bryan Fuller (@BryanFuller) December 27, 2012

If you missed Mockingbird Lane when it aired in the fall, NBC still has the full pilot available online. You can check it out below.

SOURCE: Deadline, Twitter

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Meet The Munsters In These 'Mockingbird Lane' Clips

NBC has released clips from the pilot episode of Mockingbird Lane, the reboot of the '60s B&W sitcom. The stand alone show is set to air on October 26th as a part of a night of special Halloween event programming.

Directed by Bryan Singer and produced by Bryan Fuller, the show stars Jerry O'Connell (Herman), Portia de Rossi Lily), Eddie Izzard (Grandpa), Charity Wakefield (Marilyn), and Mason Cook (Eddie).

Here is NBC's description of the show, which has not been picked up as a series:

In "Mockingbird Lane," sweet little Eddie Munster (Cook) is a normal kid about to enter the horrors of puberty. The truth is, he's about to discover that, for him, becoming a teenager means growing hair in truly unexpected places - as in all over his body - every time the moon is full! Eddie's got it pretty good though. His loving, supportive, run-of-the-mill family includes his mom Lily (de Rossi), the daughter of Dracula, his dad Herman (O'Connell), who brings new meaning to "Frankenstein," and Grandpa (Izzard), who would give Dracula a run for his money if he weren't actually Dracula! Of course, there's creepy cousin Marilyn (Wakefield), who's really the odd one because she's so completely normal. 

Buying a house these days is a nightmare, so Herman and Lily are shocked that no one scooped up the rambling Victorian mansion at 1313 Mockingbird Lane that was the site of a series of grisly hobo murders. Settling into their new place, they're quickly onto the mission at hand: to gently ease Eddie into the reality of his werewolf adolescence. But it's not always so easy to accept that your child is a little "different" from the rest of the kids. Meanwhile, Herman, who works as a funeral director, is suffering from a heart condition. Since he's made up mostly of spare parts, he knew his makeshift heart would eventually give out. No worries though, because Grandpa, who is pretty good at procuring body parts, is on the case. All Herman cares about is finding a new heart with the same capacity to love Lily as much as he has for so many decades.

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TRAILER: 'Mockingbird Lane' To Air For Halloween PLUS New Pics!

The Hollywood Reporter got the scoop that NBC will air the pilot episode of Mockingbird Lane on Friday, October 26th. It may not go much further than that, as there has been no series pick-up announcement. So this first episode of the network's reboot of The Munsters will be an early Halloween present for those who were aware of it, and interested to see it. Few pilots that don't go to series are so lucky to ever make it to broadcast. Usually they are just buried and forgotten (you have to scour the internet to find clips from David E. Kelly's NBC Wonder Woman reboot pilot from last year).

Directed by Bryan Singer, and produced by Bryan Fuller, the proposed high concept horror series starred Jerry O'Connell (Herman), Portia de Rossi (Lily), and Eddie Izzard (Grandpa).

NBC released some new official stills and the preview trailer promoting the broadcast night. In the sneak peek you can hear a slight nod in music to the original series' theme, and it looks like Spot has not only had a big budget makeover, but finally gets out from under the staircase!

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NBC Passes on 'Munsters' Reboot 'Mockingbird Lane'

Looks like NBC's modern day reboot of The Munsters may not make it to the air after all. According to Deadline, Mockingbird Lane, starring Jerry O'Connell as Herman, Portia de Rossi as Lily, and Eddie Izzard as Grandpa, is not looking like a shoe-in to go to series as planned, or hoped.

The pilot episode was directed by Bryan Signer (X-Men, X2, Superman Returns), and written/ produced by Pushing Daisies mastermind Bryna Fuller. Deadline reports that while the first look at the new take on the '60s monster comedy scored points for its visual style, but its high concept approach ultimately ended up being considered too risky for the NBC network brass.

Last year NBC also passed on another high profile reboot, and didn't move beyond the pilot of the re-imagining of DC Comics' Wonder Woman written and produced David Kelley, which starred Adrianne Palicki. Mockingbird Lane maintained a lower profile on the internet than Wonder Woman did, which received much negative buzz once a promotional still of its heroine in full costume was released and promptly met with a big thumbs down.

I was definitely interested to see what the team of Fuller and Singer could bring to the table with the property, and its unfortunate to hear that a high concept approach may have been its undoing, which is precisely what you would have expected from that creative team. While there was some obvious skepticism of the darker edgier reboot, a welcome curiosity factor grew the more we learned and saw about the show.

You can check out an earlier post on Mockingbird Lane here, which has concept art and pictures of the cast in full costume. The image to the right shows original Eddie Munster Butch Patrick posing with the new cast on the new 666 Mockingbird Lane set. Its a shame to hear we will not see what the new Spot looks like, who is likely lurking under that staircase.

SOURCE: Deadline

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'Mockingbird Lane' Cast Photo Revealed!

The first (lo-res) promotional look at the cast of NBC's upcoming Mockingbird Lane in costume has hit the web.

The Bryan Fuller produced modern day reboot of The Munsters stars Jerry O'Connell (Herman), Portia de Rossi (Lily), Eddie Izzard (Grandpa), Charity Wakefield (Marilyn), and Mason Cook (Eddie).

The most recognizable from the original looks to be Wakefield's Marilyn, who retains a striking resemblance to Pat Priest's take in the '60s show. While de Rossi and Izzard look great as the new Lily and Grandpa Munster, surprisingly Jerry O'Connell looks pretty much like Jerry O'Connell as Herman. The pilot was directed by Bryan Singer (X-Men, Superman Returns).

The cast poses with original Eddie Munster, Butch Patrick.

You can check out other images from the set and additional production art here.

SOURCE: JoBlo, Comic Book Movie

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'Mockingbird Lane' News: Set Pics, Lily Is Cast & O'Connell Talks Herman

Lots of news regarding NBC's dark reboot of The Munsters. Pics from the set revealing Grandpa and Marilyn Munster's looks have surfaced, Jerry O'Connell talks about what to expect, and the show has found its leading lady Lily.

Portia De Rossi has secured the female lead in Mockingbird Lane, joining Jerry O'Connell (Herman), and Eddie Izzard (Grandpa). True Blood actress Mariana Klaveno was originally set for the part. However, she was cast in a supporting role in ABC's Devious Maids and was not released from her contract to pursue playing Lily for NBC.

The pilot, delayed in production due to late casting, derives its name from the street address the Universal Studios monsters-inspired family lived on in the original show, 1313 Mockingbird Lane. The pilot is being helmed by Bryan Singer (X-Men) and produced/written by Pushing Daisies mastermind Bryan Fuller.

'We want this to be an American Harry Potter," Fuller told Entertainment Weekly in April. "Any story you can tell on Parenthood, we can run through a monster prism and tell in a twisted way. It's an American Horror Story the whole family can watch."

De Rossi, who most recently was seen in ABC's Better Off Ted and the FOX cult phenom Arrested Development, will take over from Yvonne De Carlo's Lily in the '60s black and white comedy show. The character was based on the Bride of Frankenstein, as Herman was modeled after Frankenstein's Monster (with O'Connell filling in Fred Gwynne's iconic big boots).



“It’s gonna be completely different,” Jerry O'Connell recently revealed to Access Hollywood. "It’s a little darker than the original. It really is."

O'Connell also said in addition to his excitement for working with Singer and Fuller, that the new modern take has "a lot of cool special effects." "I can’t wait for people to see it,” he added.

Mason Cook (Spy Kids 4D) has been cast as Eddie, the werewolf son of Herman and Lily, and newcomer Charity Wakefield will play Marilyn, the black sheep cousin who stands out as an actual normal person. Here is a picture of Wakefield from the set of courtesy of Arrow In The Head.

In addition to this picture released from Bryan Fuller of Izzard as Grandpa from a costume fitting, Entertainment Weekly scored a first look a while's back at some of the character designs for Grandpa, Lily, and the iconic family mansion. It remains to be revealed if the Munsters' fire breathing pet Spot will live under the staircase in this version.

And check out here Jerry O'Connell chatting with AccessHollywood.com's Laura Saltman about what he may look like as Herman Munster.

SOURCE:  The Hollywood Reporter, Entertainment Weekly, AccessHollywood.com, Arrow In The Head

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