EXCLUSIVE: NBC comedy pilot Girlfriend In A Coma will be recasting its lead following the departure of Christina Ricci. I hear Ricci left the project after the table read. She was the first major cast member to board the pilot, which has been a favorite of NBC brass. As part of Ricci’s casting, the project was expected to move after the pilot from Los Angeles to New York where she is based. Production will now likely stay in Los Angeles if the pilot goes to series. Written by Liz Brixius based on Douglas Coupland’s book, Girlfriend In A Coma centers on Karen, a woman who was in a coma for many years and unexpectedly wakes up to find she has a 17-year-old daughter, Evie (Miranda Cosgrove). Daniel Stern and Ann Cusack play Karen’s parents, who have been raising Evie. Recastings are an unfortunate but unavoidable part of pilot season when 100 pilots are being cast in the span of a month and a half. Other pilots that have undergone recastings so far this season include ABC’s Keep Calm And Karey On, Mixology and Pulling, Fox’s The List and Gang Related and NBC’s untitled Robert Padnick.
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