Friday round-up: Latest news, deals & hires

Trump team shifts BBC lawsuit

The BBC is facing a small boost in its fight against Donald Trump’s defamation lawsuit, as the President seeks to narrow his claims against it.

Trump’s legal team has requested to remove the claim that the Panorama doc – Trump: A Second Chance – damaged his brand and businesses. Instead, the US president is claiming the doc caused reputational harm, in a move aimed at reducing the BBC’s need to obtain his financial records.

While he considers the move to narrow the claims, US district judge Roy Altman has issued a temporary pause on last month’s order requiring the President to hand over his financial records.

The US President was ordered to submit the records to provide evidence of damage to his businesses last month, in what was also considered a boost for the BBC’s case. Read more

EPCOT theme park ride lands pilot with Disney+

Disney+ has greenlit a pilot for a drama that has been inspired by a ride at its EPCOT theme park in Florida.

Spaceship Earth has Jason Fuchs attached as show runner via his Five Ten Productions banner, with Michael Waldon’s Anomaly Pictures also onboard. 20th Television produces.

The show will explore what happens when a band of teenagers team up to save Earth after a mission to avoid an “imminent global cataclysm goes awry”.

EPCOT focuses on human achievement and launched in 1982. It would not be the first Disney theme park ride to make it onto screen, with the Pirates of the Carribean franchise the most famous example.

Bad News Dads developing at Apple TV

Apple TV has put a comedy series into development, with James Marsden set to star.

Bad News Dads is a half-hour show that has been created by Stephen Falk, Berlanti Prods and Warner Bros TV.

The show is based on Adam Frost’s novel of the same name, which follows a baseball team and their reaction to the mysterious death of one of its member’s wives. Deadline broke the story.