TBS has set a premiere date for a second season of “The Real Gilligan’s Island” and is also developing new shows with Whoopi Goldberg and the husband-wife team of David Arquette and Courteney Cox Arquette.

Season two of “The Real Gilligan’s Island,” with real-life counterparts to the sitcom’s characters battling for a cash prize, will make landfall on June 8. The first edition of the show was a hit for the network, drawing more than 4 million viewers for its premiere and ranking as the top new unscripted show of 2004 on cable.

The second season, which has already begun production, will feature two more teams of castaways who fit the bill of Gilligan, the Skipper, actress Ginger and the rest of the cast. Executive producer Mike Fleiss promises a love triangle between a Professor, a Gilligan and a Mary Ann and an injury to one of the Gingers.

Show ‘Super sizes’ ‘Fat Actress’ debut

In the way that a big pile of fries goes with a triple cheeseburger, Showtime has found what it believes is the perfect complement to its premiere of “Fat Actress.”

The pay-cable network will offer up the TV premiere of Morgan Spurlock’s Oscar-nominated documentary “Super Size Me” on Monday as the lead-in to “Fat Actress,” Kirstie Alley’s comedy series about her travails as an overweight celebrity.

Following “Fat Actress,” Showtime will repeat an episode of “Penn & Teller: Bulls**t!” about weight-loss fads and dieting. Showtime is calling the food-centric smorgasbord “Fat Monday.”

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“Super Size Me,” which will air at 8:15 p.m. ET Monday, follows Spurlock as he eats nothing but McDonald’s for 30 days straight and documents what the diet does to his body. It’s not pretty. The movie, and pressure from nutritional watchdog groups, helped spur McDonald’s to discontinue the “super-size” option it offered with its meals.

“Fat Actress” will follow at 10 p.m. The partly scripted, partly improvised comedy follows former “Cheers” star Alley, playing a not-entirely-fictional version of herself, as she tries to make a comeback in Hollywood despite being dogged about her weight. Bryan Callen (“Mad TV”) and Rachael Harris (“The Daily Show”) also star.



ROMIJN SPICES UP WB’S “PEPPER DENNIS’

Model-turned-actress Rebecca Romijn is taking on her first regular TV role, signing on to star in The WB’s drama pilot “Pepper Dennis.”

The signing of Romijn (she’s dropped the hyphenated Stamos from her name now that she and actor John Stamos are divorced) removes the cast contingency from the project, the Hollywood trade papers report. The show, which comes from writers Gretchen Berg and Aaron Harberts (“Wonderfalls,” “North Shore”), has also graduated from a presentation to a full-scale pilot.

“Pepper Dennis” is about a Chicago TV news reporter (Romijn) who’s trying to balance her career ambitions with a troubled family life and various romantic entanglements. Shawn Levy (“Cheaper by the Dozen,” “Birds of Prey”) has signed on to direct the pilot.

Romijn is probably best-known for playing the blue, shape-shifting mutant Mystique in the “X-Men” movies. The one-time Sports Illustrated and Victoria’s Secret model also appeared in “Femme Fatale” and “The Punisher.”

Her TV credits include a recurring part on “Just Shoot Me” in the 1999-2000 season and guest appearances on “Friends” and “Jack & Jill.” She also hosted MTV’s “House of Style” from 1998-2000.



ABC HAILS DAVIS FOR “COMMANDER IN CHIEF’

ABC has elected to cast Geena Davis in a pilot about the first female president of the United States.

The Oscar winner and one-time Olympic archery hopeful will play the title role in “Line of Fire” writer-director Rod Lurie’s two-hour pilot “Commander in Chief,” according to the showbiz trade papers. The pilot’s production was contingent on finding a lead actress to play the president; the casting of Davis removes that contingency.

Davis, who recently had a development deal with CBS, is returning to ABC four years after “The Geena Davis Show,” which aired without much success in 2000-01.

She joins a “Commander in Chief” cast that includes Kyle Secor (“Homicide”) as her husband and Ever Carradine (“Lucky”) as her press secretary. Harry J. Lennix (“The Matrix Revolutions”) is playing the outgoing president’s chief of staff.

Davis won her Oscar in 1989 for “The Accidental Tourist” and was nominated again three years later for “Thelma & Louise.” Her other credits include “A League of Their Own,” the “Stuart Little” movies, “Beetlejuice” and “The Long Kiss Goodnight.”

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