Facebook nears scripted TV debut with MTV revival

Social media behemoth Facebook is reportedly close to reviving former MTV series Loosely Exactly Nicole.

Bringing the single-cam comedy back would mark the first time Facebook has invested in scripted television.

Netflix and Hulu have both revived linear TV shows, while Yahoo did the same with former NBC comedy Community.

Loosely Exactly Nicole was one of three scripted series axed at Viacom-owned US cable channel MTV earlier this year, but a deal is close to bring it back. The Hollywood Reporter first reported the story.

Significantly, Facebook hired MTV’s Mina Lefevre in February as head of development, working under former CollegeHumor co-founder Ricky Van Veen, who joined last year as head of global creative strategy.

Lefevre had developed Loosely Exactly Nicole and launched the show before her departure.

The 3 Arts Entertainment and Jax Media-coproduced series stars Nicole Byer (Girl Code) as an aspiring actor struggling to crack Hollywood, pay bills and keep her dating life in order.

Facebook rival Apple launched its first original series, Planet of the Apps, last week, and was planning a scripted series featuring musician and entrepreneur Andre ‘Dr Dre.’ Young last year, though news of this has since gone quiet.

Traditional networks have also been experimenting with Facebook and Twitter as a distribution platform for their programming, though the idea of those services becoming rival commissioners could alter that collaborative spirit.