TCA Summer 2014 Press Tour Report: ABC & ABC Family

Today is the ABC/ABC Family day of the TCA Press Tour, and as we have in past days, we’ll be live-blogging highlights.

Unfortunately, we missed the ABC Family executive session (thank you, Hollywood traffic!), so the first show we saw spotlighted was Chasing Life, which airs Tuesdays at 9PM on ABC Family. There was talk about the bold choices the show has made, and how “young people like to talk about things that grown-ups get uncomfortable talking about,” which explains the trend of interest in cancer-related stories. Chasing Life was not created, though, in a response to The Fault In Our Stars; the pilot was shot in 2012.

Here are some other highlights:

Paul Lee Executive Session: Lee points to the diversity of new ABC sitcoms as showing off “authenticity.” Lee also feels The Goldbergs will be an asset for the network that will last for many years, but also fielded questions about Trophy Wife. He won’t comment much on what Marvel has planned, and says that How To Get Away With Murder will got for 15-16 episodes before making way for Secrets and Lies.

How To Get Away With Murder: Creator/Executive Producer Pete Nowalk says he finds putting ordinary people in extreme circumstances appealing. Viola Davis finds to Professor Annalise Keating to be a “realistic protagonist.” “Annalise is someone that we see through the students’ eyes,” Nowalk says.

“I love the fact that she’s messy and mysterious,” Viola Davis enthuses.

Selfie – Doctor Who’s Karen Gillan stars with John Cho in a new comedy from Suburgatory’s Emily Kapnek. Her character Eliza Dooley is incredibly self-absorbed and the show looks like a lot of fun.

Black-ish – Anthony Anderson, Tracee Ellis Ross, and Laurence Fishburne star in a series about an African-American family living in an upper-class neighborhood, and various cultural shenanigans ensue. This show will air in the Wednesday 9:30 slot.

Forever – Forever features an immortal man (played by Ioan Gruffudd) who dies multiple times, and wakes up naked every time. Ultimately, he ends up working as a medical examiner alongside Alana De La Garza’s character, Detective Jo Martinez. Matt Miller produces, and Judd Hirsch (Taxi) also stars.

Manhattan Love Story – This new half hour comedy sees a young couple in Manhattan (shocking!) and we overhear their inner monologues. The trailer is a lot better than the title would let you think the show would be.

Cristela – The last panel of the press tour. Cristela Alonzo stars in the series. Alonso won the room over with her charming charisma, which will hopefully translate to viewers for the show in the Fall.

Stay tuned for more highlights from ABC’s Fall here on KSiteTV!