Jake Kasdan, who directed the pilot for Liz Meriwether’s freshman hit New Girl, will direct another female-centered single-camera comedy pilot from a female creator for Fox, 20th TV and Chernin Entertainment this season. Kasdan has come on board to helm Dana Fox’s Ben Fox Is My Manny, which centers on an uptight single mother whose aimless brother moves in to help raise her daughter (Maggie Jones). The gig stems from the overall deal Kasdan signed with 20th TV last summer.
Another director of a 2011 pilot that went to series, Michael Mayer, is back on pilot duty. Mayer, who made his pilot directing debut last season with NBC/Universal TV’s upcoming musical drama Smash, has been tapped to direct another NBC/Universal TV pilot, Do No Harm, a medical drama about a brilliant neurosurgeon who wrestles with his dangerous alter-ego that threatens to wreak havoc on his personal and professional life. David Schulner wrote the script and is executive producing with Peter Traugott and Rachel Kaplan. Stage director Mayer won a Tony in 2007 for Spring Awakening.
