It’s a new ball game for Fox
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. — With the Disney purchase of 20th Century Fox, it’s no longer business as usual at Fox Broadcasting. It was not bought by Disney and is being dubbed “New Fox” as it stays in the Rupert Murdoch portfolio alongside Fox News Channel and Fox Sports.
Fox Television Group co-chairmen and co-CEOs Dana Walden and Gary Newman said they have been planning for the Fox network’s future without an attached studio to provide programming with its new deals for “NFL Thursday Night Football” this fall and WWE wrestling on Friday nights in fall 2019.
But they said Fox will remain in the entertainment programming business as well, courting independent, non-network aligned studios — Sony, MGM, Lionsgate, Warner Bros. — with which it can partner to co-own future shows. (Broadcast networks these days, including old Fox, buy series largely from their affiliated studios — ABC from ABC Studios, CBS from CBS Studios, etc.)
“We don’t have a schedule like we used to where there’s one show in a time period and for certain periods of time you repeat that
show,” Ms. Walden said. “We’re launching shows all year long. I don’t anticipate that to change.”
That includes the returning midseason hit “9-1-1” (8 p.m. Sept. 23), which comes back without season one star Connie Britton, who only signed a one-season contract to be on the series. So far there are no plans for her 911 operator Abby to return but the character will be mentioned and producers are open to Ms. Britton coming back as a guest star, although she’s now busy shooting Bravo’s “Dirty John.”
In her place, Jennifer Love Hewitt joins the cast as Maddie Kendall, sister of Buck (Oliver Stark).
“She’s had a little bit of a tough time in an abusive relationship and comes to her brother pretty broken and needing to start over,” Ms. Hewitt said. “She was a nurse before and through his guidance and brilliance becomes a 911 operator.”
Actor Ryan Guzman (”Heroes Reborn”) is another newcomer to “9-1-1,” playing a firefighter.
Executive producer Tim Minear said the emergencies that seemed the most unreal in season one — baby flushed down toilet, bouncy house flying 100 feet up in the air — were the ones based on actual events. He compared the show’s approach, with four emergency incidents per episode, to going down a YouTube rabbit hole, clicking from one video to the next.
Upcoming Fox reality competitions for 2018-19 will include “The Masked Singer,” in which masked celebrity singers compete before a celebrity panel; Rob Lowe-hosted “Mental Samurai,” featuring contestants answering questions while being transported around a set at high speeds; and Justin Timberlake-executive-produced “Spin the Wheel,” a game show.
‘Timeless’ revived
NBC will produce a twohour “Timeless” wrap-up movie to air in the upcoming Christmas holiday season. The entire cast is expected to return for this concluding TV movie.
“While we wish we could’ve made another dozen seasons of ‘Timeless,’ this is the next best thing,” said showrunners Shawn Ryan and Eric Kripke in an NBC statement. “We’re thrilled to take the Lifeboat out for one last spin and bring closure to our story.”
Marsters on ‘Buffy’ reboot
Actor James Marsters is filming season two of “Marvel’s Runaways” for Hulu, which will air this winter. During a Wednesday set visit to “Runaways,” I couldn’t help but ask Mr. Marsters, who starred as Spike on “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” his thoughts on the proposed “Buffy “reboot.
“I think it is fabulous,” he said. “I saw a tweet by the woman who sold the idea that she wants an entirely new slayer within the universe established by ‘Buffy.’ So she’s not going to be Buffy, it’s going to be ‘Sabrina’ or whatever it is. I think that’s a great way to go. I’m excited about that and I think the world very much needs a new slayer right now.”
Mr. Marsters said he’d be up for reprising his role as Spike on a few conditions.
“I am open to whatever [’Buffy’ creator] Joss [Whedon] has in mind, whether it’s playing Spike or something else. I told him that a long time ago,” he said. “We’d have to get some really good lighting together” since vampires aren’t supposed to age.
Mr. Whedon is executive producing the proposed new “Buffy” although he would not be the showrunner.
Kept/canceled/rebooted
OWN renewed “Love Is __” for a second season.
The current season of PBS’s “The Great British Baking Show” will be the last to air on PBS after the series moved in its native England from the BBC to a commercial broadcaster with a mostly new cast.
Fox is developing an ongoing “24” prequel series that’s an origin story about a young Jack Bauer. Separately Fox is also developing a legal version of “24.”
CBSN Local
On Tuesday CBS announced plans to build on its CBSN 24/7 streaming news service(www.cbsnews.com/ live/) with CBSN Local, a streaming service for local CBS-owned stations, which includes KDKA-TV and WPCW in Pittsburgh.
CBSN Local will first launch in New York at WCBS and WLNY later this year with the rollout in other markets to follow. Adsupported CBSN Local programming will be fronted by anchors and reporters at local CBS stations and will ultimately be included as live channels on subscription service CBS All Access.
Channel surfing
“Star Trek: The Next Generation” star Brent Spiner will play the U.S. vice president in the upcoming fourth season of “Supergirl.” … Warner Bros. is developing an “ALF” reboot featuring new characters that would see the furry alien move in with a new family. … The Los Angeles Times reports CNN will air a final five-episode season of Anthony Bourdain’s “Parts Unknown” this fall, although only one episode will feature the host’s usual narration, completed prior to his death in June. … Amblin TV optioned the rights to Elaine Weiss’ “The Woman’s Hour: The Great Fight to Win the Vote” about the decadeslong fight to grant women the right to vote with Steven Spielberg and Hillary Clinton attached as executive producers. The project will be shopped to TV networks. … National Geographic Channel debuts a four-night event, “Yellowstone Live” (9 p.m. Sunday through Wednesday), showcasing wildlife. … Later this year subscribers to Amazon Prime who have Comcast for cable will be able to access Amazon’s Prime Video via Comcast Xfinity’s X1 cable box. ... HBO ordered a series based on Audrey Niffenegger’s novel “The Time Traveler’s Wife” that will be adapted by writer Steven Moffat (”Sherlock,” “Doctor Who”). …
Tuned In online
Today’s TV Q&A column responds to questions about “This Is Us,” “Timeless” and WPXI. This week’s Tuned In Journal includes posts on “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and “The Sinner.” Read online-only TV content at http:// communityvoices.post-gazette.
Tuned In podcast includes conversation about fall cable and streaming shows. Listen at https://soundcloud.com/ pittsburghpg.