TV News Roundup: NBC to Re-Air ‘The Blacklist’ Episode in Honor of Brian Dennehy

In today’s TV news roundup, NBC announced it’s re-airing anepisode of “The Blacklist” to honor the recent passing of Brian Dennehy and Variety got an exclusive featurette of Quibi’s thriller series “The Stranger.”

PROGRAMMING

NBC has announced it’s re-airing a special episode of “The Blacklist” in honor of the show’s former guest star, Brian Dennehy, who passed away on April 16. The episode, set to air April 17 at 9 p.m., delves into the backstory of Dennehy’s character, Dominic Wilkinson, and his relationship with his daughter, Katarina Rostova (Lotte Verbeek). The episode, “Rassvet,” took place largely in the past with a focus on the show’s mythology, with no regular “Blacklist” case of the week. “Rassvet” originally aired almost a year ago, on April 26, 2019.

Hockey stars, Wayne Gretzky and Alex Ovechkin will headline the next edition of #HockeyAtHome on April 20 at 5 p.m. ET / 2 p.m. PT. Gretzky, a former professional hockey player, will join Washington Capital superstar Ovechkin in their first-ever joint interview. The pair will discuss the state of the NHL, their love for the sport and Ovechkin’s pursuit of Gretzky’s 894 career goal record. #HockeyAtHome is a weekly interview series with current and former players and coaches, conducted remotely by broadcast personalities and celebrities. The interview will premiere on NBCSN; SN; NHL.com; and the NHL’s Facebook, IGTV and YouTube platforms.

EXECUTIVE NEWS

Victoria Thompson has been named executive producer of multi-platform projects, ABC News announced. Thompson helped build a multi-platform model with her work on “The Dropout” which is being turned into an upcoming Hulu series. In her new role Thompson will be responsible for replicating that model by overseeing ABC News projects that will span podcast, non-fiction series, specials, and scripted forms which can be distributed across the Walt Disney Television Group and streaming partners. She will report to Mike Kelley, vice president of platforms, to maximize the value of these projects across the Walt Disney Television Group  and streaming partners and Thompson will work closely with Roxanna Sherwood, senior executive producer of platforms, to develop and produce projects that can be adapted into numerous formats.

BEHIND THE SCENES

Veena Sud‘s new drama for Quibi, “The Stranger,“ will stream on the platform betwen April 13 adn 27, and Variety has obtained an exclusive behind-the-scenes featurette of the show. The series follows a young rideshare driver (Maika Monroe), who soon learns the passenger that has entered her car is a murderous psychopath with the intention of finding his next victim. “The Stranger” is written, directed and executive produced by Sud. Dane DeHaan and Avan Jogia also star. Watch the exclusive featurette below.