Shonda Rhimes, 'Grey's Anatomy' Scribe Developing FBI Drama for NBC (Exclusive)

Joe Pugliese

Shonda Rhimes

Shonda Rhimeshas made her first sale of the 2012-13 development season.

The prolific producer is reteaming with Grey's Anatomy scribe Peter Nowalk for FBI drama Under the Gun, which has landed at NBC with a script commitment.

Nowalk will pen the script and executive produce alongside Rhimes and her Shondaland producing partner Betsy Beers under their overall deal at ABC Studios.

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Under the Gun revolves around Erin Kain, a woman who goes to work for the FBI as she struggles to make sense of a terrible event in her past that ruined her life and tore her family apart. While her young and fragile appearance doesn't typically suggest that she's best suited to work as a field agent, her dark past helps her get inside the head of criminals who were normal one day and cracked the next.

The script deal marks the Grey's Anatomy, Private Practice and Scandal showrunner's first sale of the season for her Shondaland banner. Last season, Rhimes and companysold four dramas -- three to ABC and one to Fox. One, period drama Gilded Lilys from Gossip Girl's K.J. Steinberg, was ordered to pilot but was not ultimately picked up to series.

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Nowalk has been with Grey's since 2007, working as an executive story editor and rising to writer and producer of ABC's top drama.

Rhimes is repped by ICM Partners and attorney Brooke Wharton; Beers and Nowalk are with UTA and Sloane Offer.

Email: Lesley.Goldberg@thr.com; Twitter: @Snoodit

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'American Idol' David Cook Covers Counting Crows at Tampa Bay Summerfest (Video)

Michael Becker / FOX

American Idol Season Seven winner David Cook closed out the day-long Tampa Bay Summerfest celebration on Saturdaywith the Counting Crows' ode to a winter month -- "A Long December." Cook's concert alsoincluded the premiere ofa new song, "From Here To Zero."

"We like to throw covers in the shows," Cook told the audience before launching into a poignant, stripped down version ofthe 1996song from Counting Crow's album, "Recovering the Satellites."

Cook's show closed out an afternoon that included appearances by singer-songwriter Edwin McCain and Juliet Simms of The Voice. Sponsored by Irish 31 Pub and Eatery, the show will donate portions of the proceeds to the ALS Association, a nonprofit group that supports research to fight Lou Gehrig's disease.

Dressed plainly in a brown plaid shirt, Cook delivered a solid acoustic set with re-worked versions of his own material, including "The Last Song I'll Write For You," "Mr. Sensitive," "Heroes," "Lie" and "Life on the Moon."

Cook was especially chatty with the crowd, weaving jokes and personal stories into the evening.He told a humorous story about his time performing as a struggling musicianin Kansas City,when some "slick-looking business man" asked him if he knew how to play the Lynyrd Skynyrd athem, "Freebird." When Cook responded he didn't know how to sing that song, he got a surprise.

"[The guy] said, 'good, don't ever learn it' and he threw $20 in my case," he said. "Of all the weird lessons that could have stuck with me in the last, 15 or 16 years, that's the one that stuck. So I didn't learn 'Freebird." So it you yell for it, you 'aint getting it."

Cook, who parted ways with RCA Records last year, is currently living in Nashville writing songs for a future record.

Watch some highlights from last night's show, including Cook's cover of "A Long December" and his new song, "From Here to Zero":

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'American Idol''s Haley Reinhart Rocks The Girl Scouts in Chicago

Nick Spanos

Former Daisy Scout and American Idol finalist Haley Reinhart took time for a few inspirational words before launching into a shortbut sweet acoustic set at the Girl Scout Cookie Classic in Chicago Saturday afternoon.

"How cute are you guys?" asked the Wheeling, Illinois native. "We are here for a big celebration aren't we?"

The singer, who is promoting her new CD, Listen Up!, was part of a day-long event celebrating the Girl Scouts 100 Year Anniversary. The day, hosted by the local council of Greater Chicago and Northwest Indiana, featured aninaugural Girl Scout Cookie Classic 5K run, walk and celebration. The daywas capped off by an afternoon of entertainment, games, sing-alongs, andan on-site vendor expo.

The 22-year old singer was celebrating a milestone of her own- herbirthday. Mid-way through the set,Reinhart was surprised by her father (who also handledacoustic guitar duties), Harry, with a cake and a singalong of "Happy Birthday" by a choir of young scouts.

The Season 10 third-place finisher also brought some Girl Scouts up on stage to inquire about scouting, with a focus on community involvement and all the benefits of the organization.

"Being a Girl Scout for memeans really being active in your community, and believing in yourself and knowing that you can really achieve something if you put your mind to it," she said.

Reinhart took on the role of a cooler big sister, with a message of empowment for young women.

"You are a group, a team, an alliance, a circle of friends, a family," she said. "I want you to remember as you grow up to take all of these things you learn now with you and really just make a difference."

Reinhart, who performed songs from her CD, including "Free" and "Hit The Ground Running," surprised the crowd with a cover of Elton John's "Bennie and the Jets" -- a song she has not peformed since the Idol tour.

Reinhart is the second Idol this summer to perform for The Girl Scouts. This past June, Season 10 alum Thia Megia joined the "Rock The Mall" event in Washington, D.C.

Reinhart was clearly honored to be involved in this weekend's ceremony, and offered words of advice.

"I want you girls to know that you have a voice, too, and I really ecourage you to use it," she said. "Keep it up and follow your dreams."

Next up for Reinhart --an appearance at Carnegie Hall with fellow Season 10 alum Casey Abrams.

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"American Idol" David Cook Covers Counting Crows at Tampa Bay Summerfest (Video)

Michael Becker / FOX

American Idol Season Seven winner David Cook closed out the day-long Tampa Bay Summerfest celebration on Saturdaywith the Counting Crows' ode to a winter month -- "A Long December." Cook's concert alsoincluded the premiere ofa new song, "From Here To Zero."

"We like to throw covers in the shows," Cook told the audience before launching into a poignant, stripped down version ofthe 1996song from Counting Crow's album, "Recovering the Satellites."

Cook's show closed out an afternoon that included appearances by singer-songwriter Edwin McCain and Juliet Simms of The Voice. Sponsored by Irish 31 Pub and Eatery, the show will donate portions of the proceeds to the ALS Association, a nonprofit group that supports research to fight Lou Gehrig's disease.

Dressed plainly in a brown plaid shirt, Cook delivered a solid acoustic set with re-worked versions of his own material, including "The Last Song I'll Write For You," "Mr. Sensitive," "Heroes," "Lie" and "Life on the Moon."

Cook was especially chatty with the crowd, weaving jokes and personal stories into the evening.He told a humorous story about his time performing as a struggling musicianin Kansas City,when some "slick-looking business man" asked him if he knew how to play the Lynyrd Skynyrd athem, "Freebird." When Cook responded he didn't know how to sing that song, he got a surprise.

"[The guy] said, 'good, don't ever learn it' and he threw $20 in my case," he said. "Of all the weird lessons that could have stuck with me in the last, 15 or 16 years, that's the one that stuck. So I didn't learn 'Freebird." So it you yell for it, you 'aint getting it."

Cook, who parted ways with RCA Records last year, is currently living in Nashville writing songs for a future record.

Watch some highlights from last night's show, including Cook's cover of "A Long December" and his new song, "From Here to Zero":

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Green Arrow and Wonder Woman on CW? 'Arrow' Bosses Sound Off

The CW's "Arrow" and Lynda Carter as Wonder Woman

Could Green Arrow and Wonder Woman co-exist on the same network?

With the CW a month away from launching its take on DC Comics' Green Arrow, the network seems eager to have its Stephen Amell starrer Arrow potentially joined by another member of the Justice League: Wonder Woman.

The network is eyeing an origin story for the famed female superhero, exploring Wonder Woman's alter ego Diana of Themyscira in Amazon, which is in the early stages of development under comics scribe Allan Heinberg. (Coincidentally, he co-penned a five-issue JLA arc with DC's Geoff Johns.)

STORY: CW Developing 'Wonder Woman' Origin Story

So is there room enough at the network -- should Amazon move to pilot and eventually gain a series order -- for both superheroes on the CW's schedule?

"Absolutely! If there's room for a thousand reality shows, hopefully there's room for a thousand shows like this," Arrow executive producer Greg Berlanti told The Hollywood Reporter on Saturday at the Paley Center's Fall Previews. "My hope is we're successful enough that we're all on the air together, that'd be great."

The CW's Arrow stars Amell(Private Practice) as Oliver Queen/Arrow, a hooded vigilante who returns home to Starling City five years after being presumed dead from a boating crash to carry out revenge upon the people who have transformed his hometown from the sprawling city it once was. The series is an adaptation of the long-running DC comic book character that first appeared in 1941.

Berlanti and writing partner Marc Guggenheim, whose superhero credits also include ABC's short-lived No Ordinary Family and the Ryan Reynolds feature Green Lantern, say a potential one-two punch of Arrow -- should both it and Amazon land a spot on the network next year -- would recall another period on the small screen.

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"It harkens back to the years of my childhood where you had The Six Million Dollar Man and Wonder Woman and all these superhero-like genre shows all on the dial and all you had to do was change the channel," Arrow EP Guggenheim tells THR. "I think there's totally room for both shows. It would be fun to share a night with them; the CW programs two hours a night and that'd be a pretty kick-ass night of television."

With the warrior princess falling into the superhero with power category -- her abilities include flight, superhuman strength and agility -- that may, however, eliminate the character as comic fans currently know her from appearing on Arrow.

"Our show definitely takes place in a much more realistic world," EP Andrew Kreisberg tells THR. "There's no superpowers, superheroes and aliens. With Wonder Woman, Diana of Themyscira, there are superpowers. I don't foresee crossovers but one of the great things about superheroes is that they're constantly being reimagined. There's the Adam West and Christopher Nolan versions of Batman and one doesn't obviate the other. The Lynda Carter version was great and now the CW is hopefully developing another wonderful version that will be a nice compliment to Arrow."

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Arrow, unlike the CW's previous Superman adaptation Smallville, hasn't wasted any time in introducing characters from the DC Comics arsenal. At Comic-Con, producers wowed fans with the introduction of X2's Kelly Hu as villainess China White (who shows up in the second episode) as well as Aussie actress Jessica De Gouw as the Huntress, a potential love interest to Amell's Oliver/Arrow.

Amell, meanwhile, is totally down to have fellow Justice League member Wonder Woman not just on the same network but eventually enter his world of Starling City -- on one condition. "As long as she doesn't have superpowers, then we're good!"

Arrow premieres Wednesday, Oct. 10 at 8 p.m. on the CW.

Email:Lesley.Goldberg@thr.com; Twitter:@Snoodit

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MTV's Video Music Awards Drop More Than 50 Percent From Last Year's Record Ratings

Kevin Winter/Getty Images

MTV's Video Music Awards took a nosedive in the ratings.

About 6.1 million viewers tuned into Thursday night's telecast of the VMAs, dropping more than half its audience from last year's record 12.4 million haul. In the network's target 12-34 demo, the VMAs drew a 5.3 rating.

Something to consider is how different the circumstances were for this year's VMAs. Usually broadcast on a Sunday, the move to Thursday put it in direct conflict with President Obama's planned speech at the Democratic National Convention. Just two days before the show, the network announced the ceremony would move up one hour, airing from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET, to avoid any direct conflict.

Year to year, the VMAs were down more than 50 percent in total viewers.

There was stiffer than usual competition across cable, with news networks airing multiple hours of DNC coverage.

Prior to this year's broadcast, the VMAs have been on the rise, jumping to its largest audience in a decade in 2010.

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Explosive 'X Factor' Season 2 Clips Hit Online (Video)

With the premiere of The X Factor only five days away, Fox has released a fewpromotional previews of what viewers can expect in the second season--including a contestant butchering judge Britney Spears' song, "Circus" and another accusing Demi Lovato of using "auto-tune."

The clips underscore judge Simon Cowell's assertionsthat Spears can be "surprisingly mean," but also reveal that Lovato, who says in an interview that she is the "happy judge," has plenty of bark in her bite as well.

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For instance, one auditioner, who Cowell said is "like a mouse trying to be an elephant," begins to argue that he worked "too hard" to be criticized. Lovato interrupts, telling the less than talented competitor that "a lot of people work really, really hard for their dreams, but it's not meant for everybody."

Afteran angry retort of "that's why you use auto-tune and I don't," Spears cuts him to the quick, hissing "I want to know who let you on stage...I feel uncomfortable with you even staring at me."

Ouch! Another hopeful makes Spears physically wince shaking his booty to "Circus" (prompting another Cowell-ism, "It was like you had an argument with Britney Spears, got drunk and started to scream at her"), while one kid tells Lovatohe envisions himself in a "glitter explosion."

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More revelations come courtesy of judge interviews. L.A. Reid, chairman of Sony's Epic Records, said the new season feels "a little looser, younger, and lighter," while Cowell said the energy of the show "feels like ten years ago."

"I'mmore excited this year," he said. "The show is better this year...the auditions felt different than what they did a year ago. There is something in the air right now."

He also said that the reaction to the girls is electric when they walk into the room.

"I've never seen a response like it in my life. People are fainting, screaming..it's a great reaction," he said.

VIDEO: Britney Spears and Demi Lovato Show Nicer Side in New 'X Factor' Promo

While comparing Lovato to an "annoying younger sister," he praises her confidence and fearlessness as a member of the panel, and added that Spears "really wants to be taken seriously as a judge."

Spears said she found a kindred spirit in Cowell, and said she respects "the fact that he says what he thinks."

"I'm usually siding with Simon..[he is] usually on my side with a lot of things," she said. "We kind of are in agreement in the direction of what we think a star should be."

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Watch the clips below:

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