ABC
Back in January, we at iVillage advocated for a Cougar Town name change. As Courteney Cox and her costars head into the season finale Wednesday (ABC, 9:30 p.m. ET), it turns out someone else agrees: series creator Bill Lawrence. "You would be hard-pressed to watch the last three episodes of the show, and [if you] asked anyone for titles, I doubt anybody would say Cougar Town," Lawrence said in a new interview with HitFix.com
"I always own up to mistakes," Lawrence admitted. "[The title] was a great hindsight mistake."
Fact is, Cougar Town has changed dramatically since the pilot. No longer is the show focused on 40-something Jules (Cox) dating hotties half her age -- and it hasn't been for a while now. "When you write a new show, it takes six episodes to find...what's working, and what's not," Lawrence explained. "In our show, the...initial concept and title was not working as well as the other stuff. I found myself much more interested in Courteney as a mom…[and] I like how she works off of other people." In other words, forget what the title Cougar Town implies. What we have here is an ensemble comedy about a bunch of lovably dysfunctional friends and neighbors.
And as of this week's episode, Jules isn't even "on the prowl" anymore: She and her adorable neighbor Grayson (Josh Hopkins) are an official couple, and everyone knows it -- well, except for Jules' ex Bobby (Brian Van Holt), a.k.a. the dumbest character on network TV.
But changing titles is a tall order. How do you do it without confusing viewers, who already have lots of new TV show names to learn each season? Alas, despite Lawrence's wishes, the title may be set in stone after all. "The reasons not to do it I think solely come down to business reasons," Lawrence said. As of last week, ABC told Entertainment Weekly that there were “no immediate plans to change the name.”
Lawrence already names Cougar Town's episodes after songs by Tom Petty, his favorite rocker. He might do well to stick to that formula. Now, is there a Tom Petty song that sums up the whole series? How about "Learning to Fly…Despite That Stupid Name"?
What do you think is a better title for Cougar Town? Chime in below!
