USA Network is breaking into a new genre with its first sitcoms. The network has handed two projects series orders, but that doesn’t mean that the highest rated cable network isn’t done with new dramas. It also ordered a new series from Veronica Mars creator Rob Thomas and another that musician John Legend is producing.
The original sitcoms starts with Sirens, a series written by Dennis Leary and Bob Fisher. According to Variety, this will be produced by Fox TV and is about emergency medical technicians in Chicago. It is based on a U.K. series and Leary will co-executive produce.
Party House is a Universal Cable Productions project starring Jessica St. Clair and Lennon Parham, who also created it. In it, a pregnant woman asks her friend, a woman dedicated to her career, to come back to the U.S. for a baby shower.
The network also ordered the Love is Dead pilot from Chuck writer Zev Borow.
While USA is best known for its dramas, the network has been developing an interest in comedies since it picked up Modern Family repeats. It hopes to pull a move similar to TBS, which successfully used The Big Bang Theory repeats to launch original shows.
“This is the right time to be introducing half hour original comedies to the USA audience. With Modern Family joining our line-up in the fall, we can leverage television’s most popular comedy to serve as a powerful launch pad for new originals in this genre,” USA’s Chris McCumber, who runs the network with Jeff Wachtel, commented during the upfront presentation.
Added Wachtel, “Our new series come from some of the best comedic talent in the business, and reflect USA’s style – with great characters, strong execution and compelling storytelling.”
Meanwhile, on the drama side, Veronica Mars fans will have Blanco County to look forward to. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Thomas wrote and produced the project, which is based on Ben Rehder’s book.
Legend is executive producing The Edge, which is a thriller written by Adam Hoff and Justin Herber.
The other new dramas include Complications (about an ER doctor); Bank (from Fringe’s Nora Zuckerman and Lilla Zuckerman); Don’t Turn Around; Hungry and Shadow Counsel. USA added that it is also considering the pilot The Arrangement.