Tag Archives: Letterkenny

Children Ruin Everything, Industry News

CTV announces new half-hour original comedy Children Ruin Everything

From a media release:

Canada’s leading television network, CTV, announced today from Prime Time in Ottawa its newest original series CHILDREN RUIN EVERYTHING. The new, half-hour MADE®-in-Canada comedy showcases one couple’s efforts to reclaim a piece of their old lives which are continually thwarted by their young children in surprising and absurd ways. But somewhere in the toy-filled, pee-stained wreckage of what they once had, they find a new life that’s pretty good, too.

The series has been in development at CTV since 2016 and is now set to begin production in Spring 2020 in and around Toronto. Casting is underway.

From award-winning L.A.- and Toronto-based producer New Metric Media, CHILDREN RUIN EVERYTHING is created by veteran comedy writer and producer Kurt Smeaton (SCHITT’S CREEK, KIM’S CONVENIENCE). Alongside Smeaton, one of television’s premier comedy writers, Chuck Tatham (MODERN FAMILY, ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT) joins multiple Canadian Screen Award-winner Mark Montefiore (LETTERKENNY, WHAT WOULD SAL DO?) as executive producer, with Beth Iley (KILLJOYS) serving as producer.

“This is a hilarious series with broad, universal comedy at its heart, from an amazing creative team in Kurt and Chuck together with our talented partners at New Metric Media,” said Mike Cosentino, President, Content and Programming, Bell Media. “Commissioning this new series also provides the opportunity to deliver a hit series for CTV while simultaneously expanding the roster of titles for our Bell Media Distribution catalogue.”

Cosentino also confirmed that Bell Media Distribution has stepped up to become the series’ International Distributor, and has subsequently named New Metric Media as its exclusive Sales Agent for the program. CHILDREN RUIN EVERYTHING joins LETTERKENNY in New Metric Media’s growing comedy catalogue.

CHILDREN RUIN EVERYTHING is produced by New Metric Media in association with CTV and with the participation of the Canada Media Fund.

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Featured

Poll: Which three returning Canadian shows will you be watching this fall?

87 Comments

The fall television season is here, and we couldn’t be happier. With the crisper weather comes the traditional time of year when networks’ new and returning favourites hit the airwaves.

In particular, the CBC jumps into the next few weeks with longtime faves in Murdoch Mysteries and Heartland alongside soon to be classics in Anne with an E and Frankie Drake Mysteries. Not to be outdone, Corus series like Carnival Eats and Property Brothers are back and Citytv’s newbie, Hudson & Rex returns with new episodes. In short, there is a lot of television coming our way.

To celebrate, we’re asking you to check off the three returning television series you’re most looking to watching in the coming months. Have fun, and please feel free to leave a comment below regarding why you chose which shows you did. (After you make your selections, make sure you hit the blue “Vote” button just below and to the right of The Nature of Things.)

Also: wondering when your favourites return? Check out our handy calendars.

Which three returning Canadian shows will you be watching this fall?

  • Heartland, CBC (39%, 1,133 Votes)
  • Murdoch Mysteries, CBC (13%, 392 Votes)
  • Anne with an E, CBC (8%, 228 Votes)
  • Property Brothers, HGTV Canada (6%, 169 Votes)
  • Frankie Drake Mysteries, CBC (6%, 165 Votes)
  • Still Standing, CBC (6%, 162 Votes)
  • The Great Canadian Baking Show, CBC (4%, 126 Votes)
  • Hudson & Rex, Citytv (4%, 111 Votes)
  • The Nature of Things, CBC (3%, 87 Votes)
  • Highway Thru Hell, History (3%, 84 Votes)
  • Battle of the Blades, CBC (2%, 57 Votes)
  • Marketplace, CBC (2%, 53 Votes)
  • Dragons' Den, CBC (2%, 47 Votes)
  • Letterkenny, Crave (1%, 43 Votes)
  • Carnival Eats, Food Network Canada (1%, 29 Votes)
  • Baroness von Sketch Show (1%, 21 Votes)
  • CBC Arts: Exhibitionists, CBC (0%, 8 Votes)
  • First Contact, APTN (0%, 8 Votes)
  • Eyes for the Job, AMI-tv (0%, 6 Votes)
  • Bajillionaires, Family (0%, 6 Votes)
  • In the Making, CBC (0%, 0 Votes)

Total Voters: 1,464

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Letterkenny

Link: “Letterkenny,” a surreal Canadian comedy to rival “Schitt’s Creek”

By Helen Rosner of the New Yorker:

Link: “Letterkenny,” a surreal Canadian comedy to rival “Schitt’s Creek”
“Letterkenny” is darker at heart, laced with more sex and drugs and physical violence than your standard half-hour comedy—but somehow it’s played lightly and balanced out by a profusion of surreal, almost over-the-top structural devices: strikingly symmetrical shots, characters whose faces are never seen, characters who undergo entire narrative arcs without ever appearing at all. Continue reading. 

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Letterkenny, Littlekenny

Good things come in small packages: Littlekenny debuts June 28 on Crave

From a media release:

There are 500 kids at Letterkenny Central School, and audiences will soon learn about all of their pint-sized problems. The new Crave Original Series LITTLEKENNY, an irreverent, short-form animated extension of Crave’s smash-hit comedy LETTERKENNY, premieres on Friday, June 28 with all six episodes, just in time for the Canada Day long weekend.

Created, written, and directed by Jared Keeso, LITTLEKENNY tells the origin story of The Hicks, and how standing up for each other in the schoolyard resulted in their friendship. Featuring the voices of LETTERKENNY stars Nathan Dales as young Daryl; K. Trevor Wilson as young Dan; Keeso as young Wayne; and Canadian actress Kandyse McClure as the voice of Ms. Tricia, these wee-hicks may seem adorable, but as with their original incarnations, their quick wit packs a Texas-sized punch.

LITTLEKENNY will also be available on other Bell Media platforms including:

  • SnackableTV (all six episodes drop on June 28)
  • On CTV.ca as part of the SnackableTV collection (all six episodes drop on June 28)
  • The Crave YouTube channel (sampling)
  • TheComedyNetwork.ca (sampling)
  • MUCH.com (sampling)
  • MTV.ca (sampling)

Additionally, Episodes 1 and 2 will be available as a sneak peek on the Letterkenny Problems YouTube channel on June 27.

As LITTLEKENNY gets introduced to the world, its big brother LETTERKENNY is also in the spotlight over the Canada long weekend with:

  • A LETTERKENNY Season 5 marathon on Crave on Sunday, June 30 beginning at 9 p.m. ET, followed by a Season 6 marathon on Monday, July 1, beginning at 9 p.m. ET
  • New LETTERKENNY-inspired collections on Crave including “LETTERKENNY Cast’s Favourite Comedies” chosen by cast including Mark Forward and Nathan Dales, “The Best of Squirrely Dan,” and “The Best of Daryl”
  • A “Best of LETTERKENNY” five-episode marathon airs on Much on Saturday, June 29 at midnight following THE SIMPSONS. Select LITTLEKENNY episodes will also air on Much on Friday, June 28 during the Much Friday Night movie.

Another six-pack of LETTERKENNY is set to debut on Crave on October 11, as production gets set to begin on Season 8 this summer.

LITTLEKENNY is produced by New Metric Media in association with Playfun Games and Bell Media, with the participation of Canadian Media Fund, OMDC Tax Credits and the Canadian Film or Video Production Tax Credit and the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund and distributed by DHX Media with New Metric Media as sales agent. Animation services for LITTLEKENNY were provided by Little Blackstone Inc.

For LETTERKENNY, Jared Keeso is executive producer, co-writer, star, and creator, Jacob Tierney is executive producer, director, and co-writer and Mark Montefiore is executive producer for New Metric Media.

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Bad Blood, Industry News, Letterkenny

New Metric Media bolsters original slate with three development deals from critically-acclaimed authors

From a media release:

New Metric Media, the independent production company behind Hulu’s hit series “Letterkenny” and the popular Netflix series “Bad Blood”, has optioned the rights for multiple projects from three renowned authors including bestselling Criminologist Dr. Michael Arntfield (“Murder City: The Untold History of Canada’s Capital of Serial Homicide”), veteran author and Toronto Star’s lead investigative reporter for organized crime Peter Edwards and popular online personality Anne T. Donahue, announced today by Mark Montefiore, President, New Metric Media.

Based on the book by best-selling true-crime author Dr. Michael Arntfield, “Monster City” divulges the true account of the serial killers who terrorized Nashville’s music scene for over three decades in recent history — and the cold-case Murder Squad determined to bring an end to the sadistic killing sprees of ‘The Motel Killer’, ‘The Fast Food Killer’ and ‘The Rest Stop Killer’ among others. An industry-leading consultant on crime trends and emerging forensic methodologies, Arntfield is attached to consult on the project. Monster City is published by Little A, the literary fiction and nonfiction imprint of Amazon Publishing.

New Metric Media is extending its partnership with Peter Edwards, currently serving as an Executive Producer on the hit TV series “Bad Blood” which is based on one of his books. The indie prod-co will develop multiple television series to create the “Peter Edwards Universe”, based on optioning the rights to a selection of his novels. Some of his most notable books under the deal include “Unrepentant: The Strange and (Sometimes) Terrible Life of Lorne Campbell, Satan’s Choice and Hells Angels Biker” and “The Bandido Massacre: A True Story of Bikers, Brotherhood, and Betrayal”, both of which were national bestsellers as well as upcoming titles such as “The Wolfpack” to be published by Penguin Random House this year.

 “Nobody Cares” is a frank, funny personal essay collection by the author of popular newsletter ‘That’s What She Said’ Anne T. Donahue.  The prolific and raw memoir about work, failure, friendship, and the messy business of being alive in your twenties and thirties also deftly tackles the subject of mental health. As she shares her hard-won insights from screwing up, growing up, and trying to find her own path, Anne’s essays offer all the honesty, laughs, and reassurance of a late-night phone call with your best friend. Donahue is attached in the adaptation.  “Nobody Cares” is published by ECW Press.

 Michael Arntfield is repped by Sohrab Merchant at The Characters, Grace Freedson at Grace Freedson’s Publishing Network and Danny Webber at Hall Webber LLP. Peter Edwards is repped by Juliet Forrester from Top Left Entertainment and Premier Artists’ Management. Anne T. Donahue is repped by Addison Duffy at UTA and Carly Watters at PS Literary.

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