After a successful initial run of the diplomatically-titled $#*! [Bleep] My Dad Says, CBS is returning to the Twitter stream to dredge up some new ideas. Their next sitcom will be titled Mother of All Something, based on the Tweeting and blogging styles of web celebrity Kelly Oxford. The Canadian stay-at-home mom is set to write and oversee the comedy project, with Jessica Alba executive producing.
You read that right: Jessica Alba (Machete, Little Fockers) has been named as the series’ executive producer. She’ll be sharing duties with Jhoni Marchinko, who previously produced the long-running Will and Grace. No actors have been cast, but with someone like Alba attached, it’s hard to believe she won’t be in front of the camera as a main cast member. Mother of All Something will be the actresses’ first project as a producer.
CBS made headlines earlier this year when $#*! My Dad Says became the first TV show based on a Twitter user’s stream. They made more headlines with their creative re-titling of Justin Halpern’s original stream (we won’t spell it out for you) and the casting of TV legend William Shatner in the titular role. While critics – including Screen Rant – found the show shallow and unsatisfying, it premiered to over 12 million viewers in September and has done decently since. CBS has not yet renewed the show, but barring a dramatic dip in viewership, a return for a second season seems likely.
It seems the network intends for lightning to strike twice. Mother of All Something will once again combine a well-received Internet monologue with a well-known Hollywood name. Assuming that Alba is cast in the series (probably as Oxford or her doppelganger), it would mark her first regular television role since James Cameron’s Dark Angel ten years ago. While her breakout role was generally well-received, her recent movie parts haven’t been – in addition to films like Machete, she won the distinction of a double-Razzie nomination for The Eye and Love Guru in 2008. Her only other project at the moment is Spy Kids 4.
For better or worse, Mother of All Something is part of a growing trend of properties that begin on the Internet and expand to traditional media. It seems that successful web comedy has taken the place that stand-up comedians used to fill in such iconic adaptations as Seinfeld and The Andy Griffith Show. After successfully transitioning from print to web, satirical faux-newspaper The Onion is also making TV waves with shows on IFC and Comedy Central.
CBS has at least two more Twitter-inspired sitcoms in the pipeline. Dear Girls Above Me and Shh… Don’t Tell Steve, both based on popular Twitter users’ feeds, will go into production sometime after Mother of All Something. The project currently has no timeline attached.
Source: Deadline Hollywood
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