Here are some highlights from Friday, January 16 at the Television Critics Association (TCA) Winter 2015 Press Tour in a day dedicated to programming from NBC, including new programs (ODYSSEY, ONE BIG HAPPY, and THE SLAP) and returning/continuing series (THE NIGHT SHIFT, CHICAGO FIRE, and CHICAGO P.D.).

EXECUTIVE SESSION


Panel:
Jennifer Salke, President, NBC Entertainment
Robert Greenblatt, Chairman, NBC Entertainment

Pictured: (l-r) Jennifer Salke, President, NBC Entertainment;

Robert Greenblatt, Chairman, NBC Entertainment -- (Photo by: Chris Haston/NBC)

News from NBC Chairman Robert Greenblatt:

- “The odds are great that CHICAGO FIRE and CHICAGO P.D. will be back. We’re thrilled with both of them.”

- “The future is still up in the air” on the fate of CONSTANTINE.

- HANNIBAL will return to NBC this summer.

- It’s “safe to say” that NBC will never work with Bill Cosby again. There had been rumblings about Cosby for years, but Greenblatt “didn’t think it was a problem until it became critical.” When there were two allegations, NBC overlooked them, but when 15 women came out with similar complaints, “there was no way that we could move forward with it” [an upcoming Cosby project]. “I'm glad we’re out from under that,” Greenblatt remarks.

ODYSSEY
NBC
Premieres Sunday, April 5, 2015 at 10pm

Panel:
Kay Foster, Executive Producer
Adam Armus, Executive Producer
Peter Facinelli, as Peter Decker
Anna Friel, as Odelle Ballard
Jake Robinson, as Harrison Walters
Peter Horton, Executive Producer

ODYSSEY is a tale of three ordinary people doing extraordinary things. It attempts to convey that one person can make a difference. In this action drama, an international conspiracy explodes when the lives of a female Special Forces soldier, a disillusioned corporate lawyer, and a political activist from a privileged family unexpectedly collide. The world thinks she’s dead. The truth will change everything.

Pictured: (l-r) Kay Foster, Executive Producer; Adam Armus, Executive Producer; Peter Facinelli,

Anna Friel, Jake Robinson, Peter Horton, Executive Producer -- (Photo by: Chris Haston/NBC)

Executive producer Peter Horton insists that ODYSSEY doesn’t have an agenda. It focuses much more on asking questions than answering them. “We don’t keep anything secret from our audience,” executive producer Adam Armus adds, pertaining to ODYSSEY’S unconventional approach.

ODYSSEY has two crews: one working in New York City and one in Morocco. Horton praises NBC for stepping up by embracing this complex project.

Star Anna Friel explains that the hardest thing her character Odelle has to face is “complete and utter loneliness.” Friel relates to Odelle in that regard since this is the first time she has been separated from her daughter. “The need and longing to get back to your families is overwhelming when you’re away from home,” she states. ODYSSEY is “a journey of how to get home. You have to care about our characters in order for our series to succeed.”

Horton clarifies that, “The fuel of this show is tension, not action.” NBC President Jennifer Salke commends the production team for having all the scripts already written. “They’re prepared and there’s a real vision. They know where they’re going.”

ONE BIG HAPPY
NBC
Premieres Tuesday, March 17, 2015 at 9:30pm

Panel:
Brandon Smith, as Marcus
Rebecca Corry, as Leisha
Chris Williams, as Roy
Jeff Kleeman, Executive Producer
Kelly Brook, as Prudence
Nick Zano, as Luke
Ellen DeGeneres, Executive Producer
Elisha Cuthbert, as Lizzy
Liz Feldman, Executive Producer

Best friends Lizzy (gay and a bit type-A) and Luke (straight and more laid back) are like family. All grown up and still single, they've decided to start a family of their own. No, not like that (there are some lines even they won't cross) - we're talking the non-romantic, go-to-the-doctor's-office type of baby-making. Then one night, after yet another failed attempt at conception, the two head out to a bar to let off some steam. That's where Luke meets Prudence, a free-spirited British girl who's slated to go back to England in a matter of days. But just as Lizzy discovers that she's actually pregnant, Luke announces that he and Prudence got married.

Pictured: (l-r) Top Row: Brandon Smith, Rebecca Corry, Chris Williams, Jeff Kleeman, Executive Producer;

Bottom Row: Kelly Brook, Nick Zano, Ellen DeGeneres, Executive Producer; Elisha Cuthbert, Liz Feldman, Executive Producer

(Photo by: Chris Haston/NBC)

Executive Producer Liz Feldman kicks off the panel on a strong note by announcing, “This show would not be possible if Ellen had not come out in 1997, so thank you for that.” “My pleasure,” Ellen humorously replied.

Elisha Cuthbert will not play the only homosexual on the show; we’ll see others as early as the second episode, Feldman says. Cuthbert modestly verbalizes that she “couldn’t even believe that they were considering me for this character. It just seemed too good to be true.” Co-star Nick Zano actually persuaded her to accept the role by reassuring her that she was capable of shooting live in front of 200 people.

When asked if playing a lesbian was challenging, Cuthbert responded, “No. It’s like playing a human.”

The one and only Ellen, as we all anticipated, was TO DIE FOR. Laughter permeated the room, time and time again. Here are a few of Ellen’s best lines from the panel:

- “In the year 2030, we’ll have shows with an entire homosexual cast and one token heterosexual character.”

- “It’s not like I formed a production company and said, ‘Bring me all your lesbians please’ … I’m not going to be a lesbian machine.”

- “I don’t think about being groundbreaking. I don’t wake up in the morning and say, ‘I’m a lesbian!’” (imitating stretching out her arms in bed). “It’s about friendship and family, and that’s the most important thing.”

- Ellen informs us that Cuthbert’s character is very uncomfortable with the fact that Kelly Brook’s character often parades around naked. “People will say, ‘Wait a minute, don’t lesbians love all women?’”

- Ellen emphasizes that gay issues did NOT motivate this show. “All I wanted to do is put out a really funny, smart, thought-provoking show.”

So, returning to Brook’s nudity… “It wasn’t something that jumped out and caused a problem with me because of my past.” (She’s appeared in Playboy, GQ, FHM, posed nude for a PETA campaign, done lingerie ads, etc.).

Notably, ONE BIG HAPPY’s concept is derived from Liz Feldman’s reality. “It’s about my relationship with my straight best friend. We were planning on having a baby together. And then he met the love of his life. It’s coming from the truth.”

Feldman was previously a writer on THE ELLEN SHOW. “I was absolutely enamored with her. When she came out on TV in 1997, it really changed my life.” They’ve been working together for 10 years, and Feldman feels that Ellen is now a part of her DNA.

As the session was taking place, a TV critic pointed out that the Supreme Court had just announced it would rule on same-sex marriage this term.

“Yeah!” DeGeneres exclaimed. “It’s about time. The thing that changed the civil rights movement was when white people got involved and started marching. We need everyone on our side. We need people that believe in equality and believe in fairness and love. If we have people that will join us and give us that, which is only fair to have the same rights as everybody else, then it’s a wonderful world.”

THE NIGHT SHIFT
NBC
Season 2 premieres Monday, February 23, 2015 at 10pm

Panel:
Jeff Judah, Executive Producer
Gabe Sachs, Executive Producer
Jill Flint, as Jordan Alexander
Eoin Macken, as TC Callahan
Freddy Rodriguez, as Michael Ragosa
Brendan Fehr, as Drew

Pictured: (l-r) Eoin Macken, Brendan Fehr, Jill Flint, Gabe Sachs, Executive Producer;

Jeff Judah, Executive Producer; Freddy Rodriguez -- (Photo by: Paul Drinkwater/NBC)

Star Jill Flint considers herself lucky to have two jobs (the other being THE GOOD WIFE), but makes clear that “THE NIGHT SHIFT is my home. I’m happy to be back.”

This season, viewers will see more of what made TC (Eoin Macken) and Jordan (Jill Flint) fall in love in the first place. TC opening up to her changed their relationship. It’s about finding the truth and being honest with each other.

After facing a health scare last year, senior manager Michael Ragosa (Freddy Rodriguez) is ready to make some big changes in his life that will affect everyone on the staff. He’s going to be different in season two.

The two real doctors on the writing crew help inform the show. Executive producer Jeff Judah is aware that doctors have to “fix these people and not get caught up in the emotions and the stories of their patients.” But, of course, that’s much easier said than done.

Unfortunately, Daniella Alonso (Dr. Landry de la Cruz) will not be returning to the show.

THE SLAP
NBC
Premieres Thursday, February 12, 2015 at 8pm

Panel:
Thomas Sadoski, as Gary
Thandie Newton, as Aisha
Peter Sarsgaard, as Hector
Uma Thurman, as Anouk
Zachary Quinto, as Harry
Melissa George, as Rosie
Jon Robin Baitz, Executive Producer
Lisa Cholodenko, Executive Producer
Walter F. Parkes, Executive Producer

THE SLAP is a miniseries based on the book by Christos Tsiolkas and the Australian television series (THE SLAP) produced by Matchbox Pictures.

As Hector (Peter Sarsgaard) tries to navigate family politics, awkward friendships and the young woman he is dangerously captivated by, the built-up tension explodes when Hector's hotheaded cousin Harry (Zachary Quinto) slaps another couple's misbehaving child. Everyone is understandably stunned, and the party abruptly ends with the child's parents vowing legal action. What the hosts and guests don't know, however, is that this moment will ignite a chain of events that will uncover long-buried secrets within this group of friends and family...and vigorously challenge the core values of everyone involved.

Pictured: (l-r) Thomas Sadoski, Melissa George, Peter Sarsgaard, Thandie Newton,

Zachary Quinto, Uma Thurman -- (Photo by: Paul Drinkwater/NBC)

Executive producer Walter F. Parkes explains that the slap is the catalyst for everything else that follows. “Sometimes you have to break something in order to put it back right,” he says.

Melissa George, who also starred in the Australian version of THE SLAP, asserts that this series is so distinctive that she doesn’t feel as though she’s repeating herself at all. She has the ability to delve deeper in the US version. “We have this luxurious poetic dialogue and we’re on network TV! There’s no excuse for this not to deliver.”

“We didn’t have to compromise in our performances. We were allowed to go places that we wanted to go. It was very rewarding,” Thandie Newton expands.

Zachary Quinto argues that, ultimately, the show centers on internal conflict, the struggle with relationships, and the psychological dynamics that are occurring outside of the incident of the actual slap.

Uma Thurman raises the point that hitting was commonplace in the 1970s. THE SLAP is “a cultural exploration of the changing face of how to treat a human being, of compassion, of what’s acceptable and what’s unacceptable.”

The show is set in Brooklyn, NY. Peter Sarsgaard remarks how “every culture you could possibly imagine is living on top of one another and these people have to somehow co-exist.”

Dylan Schombing, the child actor who got slapped, “had incredible staying power and lasted longer than most kids would have,” praises executive producer Lisa Cholodenko. He was wonderful and even made his own acting decisions!

“It was a big scene with a lot of technical elements to it and the thing that was most important to everyone was the safety of the kids,” Quinto promises.

CHICAGO FIRE
NBC
Returns Tuesday, February 3, 2015 at 10pm
CHICAGO P.D.
NBC
Airs Wednesdays at 10pm

Panel:
Eamonn Walker, as Chief Wallace Bode (FIRE)
Taylor Kinney, as Kelly Severide (FIRE)
Jesse Spencer, as Matthew Casey (FIRE)
Dick Wolf, Executive Producer
Sophia Bush, as Detective Erin Lindsay (P.D.)
Jesse Lee Soffer, as Detective Jay Halstead (P.D.)

Pictured: (l-r) Taylor Kinney; Eamonn Walker; Jesse Spencer; Exec. Prod. Dick Wolf;

Sophia Bush; Jesse Lee Soffer -- (Photo by: Paul Drinkwater/NBC)

When the cast of CHICAGO FIRE was asked about the dangers of working in such close proximity to fire, star Taylor Kinney responded, “You get more comfortable. We raise the stakes in terms of what we’re doing.” However, Kinney reassures us that the priority is always safety.

“You do feel that something can go wrong at any time, though,” Jesse Spencer admits. “We shoot in a lot of abandoned buildings. It’s not a very glamorous job, really. But we could never do the show anywhere else,” Spencer says.

According to Eamonn Walker, the real firefighters they work with provide “a wealth of knowledge, a constant source of information. You can’t help learning about how they get through their day.”

Sophia Bush’s character on CHICAGO P.D., Detective Erin Lindsay, encounters a career-related dilemma as she debates whether she wants to do what looks better on paper or what made her happier before.

Bush describes the crossover episodes between the two shows as “kind of like being in a fraternity house. We have a good time.”

Bush and co-star Jesse Lee Soffer laugh as they share the story of forgetting to put their car in park during “aggressive driving drills,” despite being warned countless times to ensure it’s in park. They jumped out of the car and watched it roll away.