NBC Stars Preview New Shows at Upfronts 2011 (VIDEO)
NBC wants you, dear readers and viewers, to know that they are different. This is a new NBC, filled with period dramas, concept shows and the return of the multi-camera sitcom.AOL TV hit the red carpet of NBC's 2011 Upfront Presentation to get the dish on how these new shows will help shape NBC straight from the stars themselves.
What's new? More comedies! Edgier dramas! The network is touting brand new shows with fresh concepts and old favorite stars.
Hank Azaria and Kathryn Hahn star in 'Free Agents,' a remake of a British show about working and love. 'Party Down' co-creator John Enbom writes and executive produces. Writers, executive producers and real-life BFFs Lennon Parham and Jessica St. Clair star in 'Best Friends Forever.' Think a modern day 'Laverne and Shirley' or Lucy and Ethel.
Other new comedies include Laura Prepon headlining 'Are You There Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea,' Will Arnett, Maya Rudolph and Christina Applegate as neighbors and parents in 'Up All Night,' Whitney Cummings and Chris D'Elia star in 'Whitney' and Amanda Peet and Jeffrey Tambor hold down 'Bent.'
Over in the drama department, 'Awake,' starring Jason Issacs, B.D. Wong and Cherry Jones, tells the story of a man who is so distraught with grief, he creates an alternate reality. In one, his son is dead, in the other, his wife is. Which is the real world and which is the dream? Not even the stars know.
'Smash,' from Steven Spielberg and the people who brought you 'Chicago,' sheds a new light on musicals. From the producers and the lyricists to the stars -- including Anjelica Huston, Debra Messing and Katharine McPhee -- the new drama will tell the story of how a Marilyn Monroe musical came to be.
Then we have 'Grimm,' a police drama set in a world where fairy tales are real. Look for things to get pretty spooky, according to stars David Giuntoli and Bitsie Tulloch.
Crime gets sexy in 'Playboy,' and series star Amber Heard said there's something for everyone, especially if you're a fan of 'Mad Men'-era dramas.Other new shows include 'Betty White's Off Their Rockers,' a new Brian Williams primetime news series, Elle Macpherson's 'Fashion Star,' 'The Firm' and the Maria Bello-fronted 'Prime Suspect.'
And of course, when given the opportunity, who would we be to turn down a chance to talk to our favorite Greendale Students? The cast of 'Community' looked to the future -- a future outside of the Greendale Community College walls.
For a previews and trailers of the new NBC shows, head on over here.
Tell us: Which NBC show are you looking forward to seeing?
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