the beautiful life

The CW is getting really good at this. First those OMFG ads for Gossip Girl and now this:

The cast for the upcoming drama The Beautiful Life is posing naked for the ad campaign in support of the show's launch on September 16th. Well... almost naked. And not the whole cast.

The drama, which seems to only have one premise based on the way The CW is pitching it, is apparently about really good looking people who happen to also be alive. It's not about unattractive zombies who look like they're dead. That may be why series regular Mischa Barton is conspicuously absent from the ad campaign. Ohhh... SNAP! Also sure to raise controversy? Corbin Bleu - the teenybopper from Disney's annoying High School Musical franchise - is one of the stars in the campaign. Hooray for role models.

Anyway, the tagline for the season is pretty funny too - "what are you looking at?" Why is it funny? Because the only answer I can come up with is "not much." Pictures after the jump...

The network portion of the TV Critics' Press Tour continued on Tuesday with The CW's half-day of panels for their new fall lineup. You can follow me for all the notable moments and breaking news on Twitter (@TheTVShowGirl), but here's a handy recap of the day's events.

The CW presented panels for 'The Vampire Diaries,' 'The Beautiful Life,' 'Melrose Place' and 'Life Unexpected.' Then, TCA members get a special treat -- a fieldtrip to the sets of 'Private Practice' and 'Castle,' which I'll tell you more about later.

Click here to see all the highlights ...

When Ashton Kutcher, Ashlee Simpson-Wentz, Elle Macpherson and the rest of the panel for Kutcher's CW show The Beautiful Life, I was figuring the panel would field nothing but questions about Mischa Barton, given the recent publicity over her hospitalization and other personal issues. Surprisingly, though, the critics actually wanted to focus on the show itself, which is about the lives of young models and how they deal with the various pressures of that lifestyle.

However, in the middle of the panel, a Barton question did come up. Kutcher was quick to defend the actress, saying she was "never unavailable for a day of work." With all the young people in the cast, he thinks the "good thing about Mischa is that she's done it before," and can provide guidance.

It's CW day at the TCAs, and network honcho Dawn Ostroff presented her executive session in the middle of the day, after a parade of panels that included one pretty face after another, including Ashton Kutcher, Elle Macpherson, the cast of Vampire Diaries and a few alumni from the original Melrose Place. Ostroff fully admitted that the network is courting 35-and-under women with their shows, trying to build on the "one tweet per minute" success of shows like One Tree Hill, Gossip Girl, and 90210.

But what about two of the network's more veteran and male-oriented shows, Smallville and Supernatural? Does the network still believe in them? Ostroff tried to give a definitive "yes," but the rest of her panel, and the promos shown before she appeared, say otherwise.

What should you expect from the new TV shows coming this fall? Read our first impressions of The CW's 'The Beautiful Life: TBL,' starring Sara Paxton, Ben Hollingsworth and Mischa Barton ...

Premise: When Iowa farm boy Chris ( Ben Hollingsworth) is discovered by a modeling agent while visiting the Big Apple, he's thrown into a glamorous but cutthroat world. Helping him along is rising star Raina (Sara Paxton), whose career is taking off -- just as the infamous Sonja (Mischa Barton) returns to town to reclaim her place as top model.

Lauren Lee Smith is leaving the scene of the crime. The actress, who joined the cast of 'CSI' last season, will not return as a regular for the show's upcoming 10th season.

Also in the news today: Shawn Pyfrom exits 'Desperate Housewives,' while USA Network renews 'Burn Notice' and 'Royal Pains.'

See more of today's top TV headlines after the jump.

There's more bad news to report for 'The Beautiful Life' star Mischa Barton.

Just days after she was hospitalized under psychiatric hold, sources for the Ausiello Files are now saying the show -- about a group of beautiful New York models -- will move forward as planned, with or without her.

How will they do it? According to the report, casting is already underway for a recurring character named Jane. Jane is said to closely resemble supermodel and lead character Sonja Stone, whom Barton played in the show's pilot.

Over the weekend, news also broke that the show's production start date would be delayed one week due to unfinished set designs.

'Top Chef''s Padma Lakshmi has signed a sitcom deal with NBC, which will reportedly have the Emmy nominee starring in her own half-hour series. We'll eat to that.

Also in the news today: Production on 'The Beautiful Life' gets delayed, while Sean Bean learns to play the 'Game.'

See more of today's top TV headlines after the jump.

There has been a delay on the new CW series The Beautiful Life, which is a new drama about a bunch of models sharing a house in New York. It sounds very much like the usual show found on the CW, doesn't it? Anyway, it is executive produced by Ashton Kutcher and stars Mischa Barton (formerly of The O.C.).

While Mischa Barton has been having some personal problems recently, the network claims that the reason behind the nine day delay of the start of production is that some of the sets were not completed on time. This is what they say.

I have nothing against Mischa Barton and I hope she solves whatever problems she is having and goes on to a long and prosperous career. However, I'd have to be pretty naive to think that Barton's emotional issues were not a factor in any delay of the start of her new show.

The CW will begin the new 2009 fall season with a few familiar-sounding faces: '90210' and 'Melrose Place.'

The new 'Melrose Place' remake will premiere following the season 2 kickoff of the network's other '90s teen remake, '90210,' on Tue., Sept. 8 part of a new premiere schedule that includes an updated time switch on Mondays.

As of now, 'Gossip Girl' will move to the 9PM slot on Mon., Sept. 14, switching places with 'One Tree Hill,' according to the Hollywood Reporter.

See the full schedule after the jump.

With big hits like 'Grey's Anatomy' and '30 Rock' winding down for the season, we're getting a head start on all the buzz-worthy pilots every TV fan needs to know about.

And here are some hints -- small-screen vets like Kelsey Grammer, Mischa Barton and Sarah Michelle Gellar are set to return, classic hits ('Melrose Place') are getting high-profile remakes and two spin-offs could give their predecessors a run for their money.

Click through our pilots roundup to find out where each will premiere and which stars are on board ... so you can make the informed decisions about which shows you may want to save room for on your DVR.