Pariah wins US greenlights

Columbia TriStar Television has given two pilot commitments for high profile drama projects to Gavin Polone’s fledgling production company, Pariah.

As a result, David Koepp (Jurassic Park), reputably the highest paid screenwriter in Hollywood, will make his first foray into the television arena.

He is currently working on an as yet untitled drama about an ex-cop turned taxi driver, who continues to fight injustice while trying to win back his wife and son who left him after he was dismissed by the police for being on the take. The show is destined to air on CBS in the US.

Michelle Ashford (L.A. Doctors), meanwhile, is penning a one-hour series for Fox Broadcasting about a female sheriff in the Wild West who moves to a small town in New Mexico.

Columbia has also inked a one-year pact with Alex Borstein and Pariah, who will work together to develop a comedy series for the fall 2002.

Best known for his part in Fox’s Mad TV, writer/comedian Borstein and Polone are currently looking for another writer/producer to help craft the project