Mystery surrounds the delay of an ill-timed ‘Heathers’
On Wednesday Paramount Network, the Viacom-owned successor to cable’s Spike TV, delayed the March 7 premiere of its TV adaptation of the 1988 darkly comedic feature film “Heathers.”
A network statement said Paramount stands “firmly behind the show” and that it will premiere “later this year.” The decision to delay, which flushes away months of premiere planning and promotion, was made “in light of the recent tragic events in Florida and out of respect for the victims, their families and loved ones.”
But on Feb. 19 Paramount Network released the pilot episode online for advance viewing before its linear premiere — five days after the Florida school shooting. Why was the show OK to go online then but not OK for airing on TV three weeks later?
Paramount Network, which described “Heathers” as “satirical comedy that takes creative risks in dealing with many of society’s most challenging subjects ranging from personal identity to race and socio-economic status to gun violence,” seemed to be running full steam ahead toward the premiere, adding additional episodes to a press site for TV critics to view in the past week and a half. (After Wednesday’s decision, the pilot was removed from the network’s public website; episodes were also taken off the network’s password-protected press site.)
Paramount Network’s late-inthe-game decision may speak to how the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School has resonated far longer than previous school shootings, largely due to the activism of students who survived the attack.
This isn’t the first time current events have caused TV shows to be delayed. Two episodes of The WB’s “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” featuring violence at school were delayed in 1999 following the Columbine High School shooting in Colorado. The 1995 Oklahoma City federal building bombing delayed the May 1995 season finale of Fox’s “Melrose Place” that featured the apartment complex blowing up. A 2015 episode of USA’s “Mr. Robot” was delayed following the live-on-TV murder of a Roanoke, Va., television reporter.
The original “Heathers”
movie featured a couple, playedby Winona Ryder and Christian Slater, who take revenge on school bullies, via shootings and an attempt to blow up their school.
Set in the present and developed for television by Jason Micallef (“Butter”), TV’s “Heathers” follows supposed nice girl Veronica Sawyer (Grace Victoria Cox) and her relationships with Westerburg High’s new bad boy student, JD Dean (James Scully), and the vicious Heathers, a clique that leads through fear and intimidation.
The Heathers’ leader is plus-size, politically correct bully Heather Chandler (Melanie Field), who is routinely flanked by genderqueer Heather Duke (Brendan Scannell) and African-American lesbian Heather McNamara (Jasmine Mathews).
Taking characters who would usually be oppressed — the fat girl, the gay boy, an African-American lesbian — and putting them in positions of power is bold and potentially interesting, but it also seems out of step in the current environment.
When “Heathers” was first announced in March 2016 during the Obama presidency, these unexpected Heathers made a little more sense. In the current climate — one report found an 86 percent increase in hate violence homicides of LGBTQ Americans in 2017; another found a 25 percent increase in racial harassment complaints in 2017 — these particular Heathers are a tonedeaf choice that plays into alt-right narratives about political correctness run amok.
Early critical and social media reaction to “Heathers” has been tepid at best, particularly around the show’s treatment of identity politics. The Daily Beast called it, “a Trumpian, LGBT-bashing nightmare.”
Through the first three episodes of TV’s “Heathers” there is no school shooting, although there is a murder off school grounds. The fifth episode, which would not have aired until April, does feature a school shooting.
If almost two months after the Florida school shooting is too soon, why will, say, eight months later this year be any better?
Will “Heathers” ever air? Paramount Network says it will but announced no new premiere date. While dumping a produced season of a series (partially or fully complete; production on “Heathers” has wrapped) is rare, there is precedent for it, including NBC’s “Thick and Thin” (2006) and “Day One” (2010); Fox’s “Rewind” (1998), “The Grubbs” (2002), “The Ortegas” (2003) and “Still Life” (2003); HBO’s “12 Miles of Bad Road” (2008); and ABC’s “Great American Baking Show” (2017).
Remembering Adam Lynch
I never got to see Adam Lynch on the job — he retired from broadcasting in 1993, five years before I began covering TV for the Post-Gazette — but I admired him.
Not long after I began on the TV beat we connected, and for a decade we met for laugh-filled lunches every six months, often at the nowshuttered Papa J’s Centro Downtown.
Mr. Lynch, who died at age 89 Tuesday in San Antonio, Texas, would gleefully share behind-the-scenes stories from his years as a reporter and anchor, and we’d compare notes on contemporary local coverage and talent. It instilled confidence to bounce my impressions of local TV news off someone who had been in the business — and to have him often agree. I was impressed by his ethical and moral compass.
Most of all, I valued his warm friendship and enthusiasm for news and chatter around broadcast journalism. He was a good guy in a business that doesn’t always foster goodness.
Channel surfing
Amazon renewed “Lore” for season two. … Comedy Central renewed “Corporate” for a second season. … Syfy renewed “The Magicians” for season four. … Faith Ford (Corky Sherw o o d ) , Joe Regalbuto (Frank Fontana) and Grant Shaud (Miles Silverberg) will reprise their original “Murphy Brown” characters for the show’s new season on CBS that stars Candice Bergen. … Kristin Chenoweth will star as an accused killer in season two of the NBC comedy “Trial & Error.” … WTAE will broadcast a live debate in the race for Pennsylvania’s 18th Congressional District between Democrat Conor Lamb and Republican Rick Saccone at 7 p.m. Saturday.