Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
STARS ON SCREEN
Lifetime love: Actress/producer Sarah Jessica Parker is best known for her role as loveseeking columnist Carrie Bradshaw in “Sex and the City,” and maybe that’s why her next TV project seems like a natural fit.
Parker will serve as executive producer of a new dating show in development at Lifetime. The proposed series is tentatively titled “Swipe Swap,” and it is already drawing plenty of comparisons to the 2006 romance film “The Holiday.”
In each episode, two singles looking for love will trade places and adopt each other’s lifestyles. The idea is that they’re hoping to find love in a different place; to do that, they’ll have to live in one another’s homes, get to know their family and friends, and spend time at the other’s favorite hangouts.
Parker’s involvement is through her production company, Pretty Matches Productions, which she co-founded in 2005. Pretty Matches was behind Parker’s HBO series, “Divorce,” which wrapped last year after three seasons; now, the company is teaming up with “Love Island” and “Hell’s Kitchen” producer, ITV Entertainment, to bring you “Swipe Swap.”
This isn’t Parker’s first foray in the world of unscripted TV — the actress earned a producer credit for Bravo’s 2010 series, “Work of Art: The Next Great Artist.” But with “Swipe Swap,” she’ll likely remain off screen, unlike her “Sex and the City” costar Kristin Davis, who served as both producer and host of “Labor of Love” on Fox.
In terms of acting work, Parker was headed for Broadway before the pandemic hit. She was due to star opposite her husband, Matthew Broderick (“Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” 1986), in a revival of the Neil Simon play “Plaza Suite,” but its opening has been postponed until March 2021.
No ‘Kidding’: Comedian/actor Jim Carrey’s performance in “Kidding” has earned him strong reviews, but it wasn’t enough to save the low-rated dramedy — Showtime has officially canceled the series.
“After two seasons, ‘Kidding’ has concluded its run on Showtime,” the network said in a statement. “We are very proud to have aired this imaginative, critically acclaimed and rewarding series, and we would like to thank Jim Carrey, Dave Holstein, Michael Aguilar, Michel Gondry and the entire cast and crew for their brilliant and tireless work.”
During its two-season run, Carrey starred as Jeff Piccirillo, a.k.a. Mr. Pickles, a kindly children’s television show host whose family life is imploding. The series also starred Judy Greer (“Arrested Development”) as Jeff’s estranged wife, Catherine Keener (“The 40-Year-Old Virgin,” 2005) as puppet maker Didi and Frank Langella (“The Americans”) as Jeff ’s father/executive producer.
“Kidding” reunited Carrey with executive producer/director Gondry, who directed the actor in the 2004 film “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.” It was also Carrey’s second project with Showtime and series creator/showrunner Holstein — their first series was “I’m Dying Up Here,” a drama series set in the L.A. standup comedy scene during the 1970s. Carrey and Holstein both served as executive producers of that one, which ran for two seasons before its cancellation in 2018.
No word on any other Carreyled projects, though the actor has been busy promoting his new semi-autobiographical book, “Memoirs and Misinformation,” which hit bookshelves last month.
Another cancellation: It was billed as an anthology series and, according to showrunner Andy Greenwald, the main story for the next season had already been planned.
Alas, it appears “Briarpatch” is doomed to be a limited series: USA Network decided not to renew it for a second season.
“Briarpatch” starred Rosario Dawson (“Sin City,” 2005) as plucky investigator Allegra Dilla, who returns to her hometown after her sister is murdered. But her search for the killer ultimately becomes a fight to expose corruption in the Texas border town.
Of course, that was just the story and lead actress for Season 1. Back in January, Dawson reminded reporters at the Television Critics Association’s (TCA) winter press tour that the season was intended to be a close-ended story. “This is 10 episodes, the story’s complete,” Dawson said. “It’s not like you’re going to be left on a cliffhanger.” And that’s exactly how it played out, with the season bowing out on April 13 with a satisfying ending.
“Briarpatch” started out strong, earning positive reviews and pulling in a total of 528,000 viewers for its Feb. 6 premiere. But the numbers dropped off after that, and the series was moved to a Monday night time-slot in hopes “WWE Raw” would give it a bigger boost. Sadly, it wasn’t enough.