Upfronts Day One: Fox, ABC and a Bit of CBS
This is the week the teevee broadcast networks announce
their fall schedules at their fabled “Upfront” presentations to advertisers –
well, the first drafts of their fall schedules. Starting with Fox.
Len Wein and Carmine Infantino’s DC series The Human Target has been picked up (it was on network a couple decades ago in a forgettable series staring Rick Springfield and Clarence Clemons); it will occupy the coveted spot after American Idol on Wednesdays. Past Life, a series about a psychic
detective agency, will hold the same spot on Tuesdays. Slotting after Idol means both will be mid-season shows A new sitcom will be added to Fox’s schedule, Sons of Tucson will be plopped in the middle of their Sunday
animation block, replacing King of the Hill. Another sitcome, Brothers, has been given a 13 episode order.
Fox has picked up House, 24, Bones, Fringe, Brothers, ‘Til Death, The Cleveland Show, So You Think You Can Dance and Dollhouse.
In other Upfront news, ABC has approved pilots for a new
drama starring Dean Winters and Sam Neill called Happy Town and a comedy starring Courteney Cox called Cougar Town (bet you can guess what that one’s about). They’ve also picked up a second season of Castle as a mid-season replacement, a new V series, along with The Deep End, Jerry Bruckheimer’s The Forgotten (sort of a Without a Trace, but with amateurs), and Eastwick, an adaptation of the hit movie The Witches of Eastwick. They’ve got a comedy going starring Kelsey Grammer called Hank and another sitcom called The Middle. ABC also renewed a version of Scrubs, although much of the ongoing cast is likely to disappear after the first six episodes. True Beauty and Better Off Ted have also been picked up.
CBS has picked up an NCIS spinoff, a medical drama called Three Rivers and The Good Wife starring Julianna Margulies.
I wonder if Len and Carmine are in line for a couple of those "Thank you in a general way for your past contributions" checks they've been handing out to folks whose creations show up in adapted work as a pre-emptive strike to a lawsuit? they could pay Len in comics.I was on the fence about caring about Human Target until I heard that Chi McBride would be a regular. The man hasn't put in a bad performance, and yes I DO remember Desmond Pfeiffer.
If they didn't sue the first time, why would they sue now? Also, work for hire.
From an earlier comment by Len, it looks as if they likely will.
It's a shame that "The Unusuals" wasn't renewed. I enjoyed the series and was hoping it would be given a chance. Looks like "Lost" is not much of a strong lead-in.
Did King of the Hill get canceled? I thought I watched the season finale on Sunday not a series finale.
I haven't watched the show in years, but according to Wikipedia, there are a handful of unaired episodes from this past season. Those may or may not get aired. They may just end up on the eventual DVD set. Either way, it looks like that yes, King Of The Hill's days on Fox are pretty much over…
Anyone have any info on if FOX's pilot, "Masterwork", is still a possibilty for mid-season or if it's DOA? After seeing Natalie Dormer in the Heath Ledger version of "Casanova" and on "The Tudors", I was looking forward to seeing her in something modern and with some action.
So they didn't pick up No Heroics, eh? Hmm.