When Maura Tierney had to leave Parenthood because she needs to undergo treatment for breast cancer, there was speculation about who might replace her since the NBC project would be resuming. Well, the name that's come to the fore as Maura's replacement is a good one. Oscar and Emmy-winner Helen Hunt is in discussions for Parenthood, and usually if they're talking and it's in the trades, it's close to being a done deal.

If I were advising her and she cared about what I think, I'd tell Helen to take it. While Helen's TV experience was in a sitcom, Mad About You, she's better in dramedy. That's what As Good As It Gets was, and it got her an Oscar!

Parenthood, as NBC plans to present it in this incarnation, will be part comedy, part drama. It's right it her wheelhouse. Also, she'll be working with top-notch actors, including Peter Krause, Bonnie Bedelia and Craig T. Nelson, as well as excellent producers in Ron Howard and Brian Grazer.

Even with my lack of faith in NBC these days, if Hunt were to join Parenthood, I would give the show a chance. I was a fan of Mad About You and I like her. She'd have me tuning in for her return to TV.