'Ugly Betty's' Becki Newton 'Bites'; 'Vampire Diaries' Sean

'Ugly Betty's' Becki Newton 'Bites'; 'Vampire Diaries' Sean Faris moves to 'Wyoming'



Becki Newton, the randy receptionist on "Ugly Betty," will be reborn as a virgin.

The actress has signed on to NBC's dramedy pilot "Love Bites," says The Hollywood Reporter.

Newton, 31, played superficial and bed-hopping Amanda Tanen on "Ugly Betty," which is ending after this season.

In "Love Bites," a series that follows multiple storylines that revolve around relationships and dating, Newton will play a peppy social worker named Annie who's also a virgin.

The series is from "Sex and the City's" Cindy Chupack.

In other pilot news:

- Sean Faris (pictured above), who's heating things up in Mystic Falls on The CW's "Vampire Diaries," will play the leading man for the network's "The Wyoming Project," by "Gilmore Girls" creator Amy Sherman-Palladino. Young horse trainer Gideon Thorpe (Faris) has to pick up the pieces and run a Wyoming ranch, including caring for his three younger sisters, after their parents die.

He'll get a little help though. The oldest sister played by Renee Smith also looks after the others and handles multiple duties around the ranch well.

- FOX has found "Nirvana" with Rachael Leigh Cook, who's playing the live-in girlfriend to an Indian-American whose immigrant parents struggle to fit into American culture. And yes, it's a comedy.

- "Strange Brew," which previously cast Laurie Metcalf, has added a slew of other actors, including Jere Burnes, Aya Cash, Skylar Astin and Mo Mandel. The FOX comedy centers on a family that works together at a small brewery. Metcalf plays the matriarch who's given up alcohol, while Burns plays her husband, the president of the company. The other actors will play their grown kids.

- TBS has welcomed Lea Thompson, Charles Dutton and Jeff Davis into the "Uncle Nigel" family. The one-hour pilot revolves around veteran Philly homicide detective Nigel Wells (Gary Cole) who teams up with his untried nephew Ronnie (Matt Jones). Thompson will portray Nigel's sister and mom to Ronnie. On the force, Dutton will be the ambitious deputy while Davis plays Ronnie's nemesis.


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