Late last week, Deadline broke the news that Eric Kripke, creator of 'Supernatural,' was developing a small-screen adaptation of the comic book 'Deadman' for The CW, presumably to fill the Superman-sized gap left by 'Smallville' after the show wrapped its 10th and final season this May.

Over the course of the last decade, many successors to 'Smallville' have been mooted for the network (and its predecessor, The WB), from a rumored "young Batman" series to a failed 'Aquaman' pilot, the short-lived 'Birds of Prey' series and the more recent 'Raven,' which has seemingly stalled in development hell. Another iconic DC property, 'Wonder Woman,' just crashed and burned at NBC after the cheesetastic pilot stripped everything likable from the character, which further illustrates that name-recognition alone is not enough to sustain a show.

On the surface, 'Deadman' seems like a curious choice for a standalone series -- the character is little-known outside fan circles, and the storyline (murdered circus performer possesses others' bodies to bring his killers to justice, while helping those he inhabits to solve problems in their own lives) has already drawn inevitable comparisons to 'Quantum Leap'.

But a lack of brand awareness can sometimes be a blessing instead of a curse, allowing producers to forge their own path in shaping a character, rather than being married to fans' expectations as 'Smallville' was. In my mind, there are numerous other DC properties perfectly suited for a CW adaptation -- read on for my top five suggestions.

James Best, known to millions as Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane from 'The Dukes of Hazzard,' is suing Warner Bros. Entertainment.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, the actor's suit alleges Warner Bros. owes him royalties agreed upon when he starred in the series. The lawsuit claims Best may be owed more than $25 million.

Best filed his complaint in North Carolina federal court and in it he says he's been fighting to get detailed accounting from Warner Bros. for the last 22 years. In his original contract, Best says Warner Bros. entitled him to 5 percent of merchandising revenue from products that featured his likeness and 2.5 percent of total revenue that features other 'Dukes of Hazzard' cast members. In the suit, Best claims he got word from Warner Bros. that sales of merchandise with his identity netted less than $10 million, something he says conflicts with published reports that "sales of merchandise had soared to 'over $190 million per year' during the first 6 years in which the show aired on CBS."

Last week it was all smiles as Ashton Kutcher attended CBS's annual upfront presentation in New York as the new face of top-rated comedy, 'Two and a Half Men.'

Now it seems as though Warner Bros. and CBS may not be making longterm plans for the veteran series with Kutcher.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Kutcher's new deal, which will net him an estimated $750,000 per episode, is only for one year, even though executives are still said to be keen to continue the money-spinning 'Men' for at least another two or three years.

Yes, you read that right. British actor Hugh Grant, all-around posh boy and rom-com A-lister has reportedly been in talks to replace Charlie Sheen in 'Two and a Half Men.'

According to Deadline, the 'Bridget Jones' star first entered the running about a month ago when CBS boss Les Moonves and President Nina Tassler approved him as a candidate.

Warner Bros. Studio execs and 'Men' creator Chuck Lorre have been searching for a way to continue the money-spinning comedy without Sheen, and word is that they're still looking for a solid A-lister.

Deadline reports that after being offered $1 million per episode, Grant was close to signing a deal when he backed out unexpectedly, supposely because he balked at the demanding work schedule of a weekly TV series.

It appears the only world in which Charlie Sheen will return to his hit series 'Two and a Half Men' is his own head.

Lawyers for Warner Bros. TV, defendants in Sheen's $100-million-dollar lawsuit to get his job back, sent a letter today saying that the statements Sheen made to a Boston radio station earlier this week hinting he'd be back are completely untrue.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the letter read, "As you know, there have been no discussions, there are no discussions, and there will be no discussions, regarding his returning to or having any involvement in the series."

UPDATE: Sheen's lawyer has responded to the accusation, saying Warner Bros. is the one lying: "That's ridiculous," Sheen's lawyer, Marty Singer, told THR. "There absolutely have been discussions. As late as this Tuesday there have been discussions about Charlie coming back and everyone was involved."

It seems like you can't swing a vampire in Hollywood without hitting a reboot or "re-imagining" of a fan-favorite franchise these days, from 'The A-Team' and 'Spider-Man' all the way down to 'V'.

Rumors of a proposed 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' movie reboot have been gaining momentum for months, but confirmation finally came Monday morning when Warner Bros. announced that the project is indeed going ahead.

But here's the kicker: It'll be without the involvement of 'Buffy' mastermind Joss Whedon, the man who wrote the screenplay to the original 1992 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' film and helmed the iconic TV series of the same name.

Instead, the project is being penned by Whit Anderson, an actress turned writer (with no previous screenwriting credits, according to IMDB) whose interview with the L.A. Times' Hero Complex sent fans -- including yours truly -- into an apoplectic, foaming fit of outrage yesterday. Just another Monday on the internet ...

Breaking news: Fans want a 'Veronica Mars' movie.

Wait, that's not breaking news -- that's been the case since the series went off the air in 2007. However, it is news that Warner Bros., seemingly out of nowhere, has set up a new email address, VeronicaMarsMovie@warnerbros.com, for fans to bombard them with emails about turning the cult-hit series into a film.

"I was surprised as anyone that Warner Bros. set up a 'Veronica Mars' email address," the show's creator Rob Thomas told TV Squad via email. "No one has talked to me about it."

Ballroom 20 was buzzing with anticipation early Sunday morning, when the cast and producers of 'Supernatural' made an eagerly-awaited appearance to answer questions about the show's sixth season at Comic-Con. Series leads Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki were joined by recurring guest stars Misha Collins and Jim Beaver, as well as creator Eric Kripke, writer-producer Ben Edlund and newly promoted showrunner Sera Gamble.

To kick things off, Ackles took to the stage to present a sneak-peek of the first five minutes of his directorial debut, episode 604, entitled 'Weekend at Bobby's'. Needless to say, the crowd went wild. We'll have an overview of the five minute preview, as well as highlights from the panel, after the jump!

SPOILERS AHEAD.

Over the last 75 years, Superman has taken on challengers of all shapes and sizes, from alien overlords, to mischievous imps to killer robots. But now he's about to face a menace far more dangerous than Lex Luthor could ever be: a phalanx of Hollywood lawyers.

That's because, according to the Hollywood Reporter, 'Smallville' creators Miles Millar and Alfred Gough have teamed up with series co-producer Tollin/Robbins Productions in a lawsuit against Warner Bros. and the CW network. The allegation? Bilking 'Smallville' producers out of profits through the iffy industry practice known as "vertical integration."

That ticking countdown clock that has been a device of countless action explosion movies has just gotten a few more minutes on the clock. Don't you just love it when life imitates art?

The big screen 'MacGruber' movie, based on the popular 'SNL' sketch, has earned a later release date due to scheduling conflicts with other Warner Bros. properties.

The movie, directed by 'Lonely Island' member and 'SNL' writer Jorma Taccone, will hit a theater near you on May 21 instead of April 9.

[via Comedy News]

Kari Lizer, creator of 'The New Adventures of Old Christine,' has just signed a three-year deal with Warner Bros. Television.

The Hollywood Reporter dishes that the seven-figure contract allows Lizer to develop new projects with Warner, as well as continuing on as 'Christine' executive producer if the show receives a sixth-season order.

Lizer, who has worked as an actress, writer and producer, began her relationship with WBTV in the 2004-05 season, with two comedy pilots, 'Christine' and 'True.'

Before that, Lizer produced and wrote for 'Will & Grace' from 2000-2004 and served as a writer on 'Weird Science,' the television series based off the 1985 John Hughes movie.

Cartoon Network and Warner Horizon Television fired up the cameras in Toronto recently on the new live-action pilot, Unnatural History.

While it's easy to ask why another live action show is proceeding on the Cartoon Network, Unnatural History could be fun enough to delay your need for that explanation.

According to a network press release, we're dealing with an "action-packed blend of mystery and martial arts" here. Fortunately, there's no sign of Power Rangers masks or rubber monsters stalking Unnatural History.

When the San Diego Comic-Con opened its doors to allow every corner of television onto their floors, they weren't kidding. After seeing the roster of panels, I'm surprised the original panel from PBS's Washington Week didn't field questions from guys dressed in Transformer cosplay.

Apparently, Warner Brothers set up a panel for just about every television show that have in development including Patricia Heaton's new ABC sitcom The Middle, making it the most "fish out of water" selection for a panel at the geek confab.

And so did the geeks in attendance. The panel only drew around 75 attendees and studio heads ordered Heaton not to introduce the panel because the crowd was too small.

It seems like a no-brainer that television and Comic-Con would go together like peanut butter and jelly. But TV has actually been a bit slow to the game and viewed their presence at Comic-Con as something that goes together like peanut butter and regular butter (trust me, I've tried peanut butter and butter, and it's not good).

This year, studios have recognized the importance of the annual geek con-fab and are presenting more shows and panels than ever before. There is going to be more TV at the Con than you can shake a stick at, so don't forgot your shaking sticks.

Why so many? Variety reports that studios and networks are recognizing the buzz they can generate at the convention through electronic social networking and good ol' word-of-mouth by showcasing and premiering exclusive screenings of their shows.