Update: A half-day after leaving it in doubt, the Fox network has made something clear:
Yes, it will have “9-1-1” and “The Resident” (shown here) next season.
When executives talked to reporters early Monday morning, that was still in doubt. Charlie Collier, the network CEO, would only say that negotiations were going well; he even took the unusual step of announcing the other shows for the fall season – but not a day-to-day schedule.
A spin-off, “9-1-1: Lone Star,” was definitely coming back, but “9-1-1” – Fox’s top show in the Nielsen ratings – was indefinite. Heading into its sixth season (as is “The Resident”), it needed a new contract.
Now the earlier story:
The Fox network has announced its new line-up for fall – sort of.
Breaking with TV tradition, the network didn’t have a schedule ready this morning (Monday), when it talked to reporters. It also didn’t have deals worked out to bring back “9-1-1” or “The Resident” (shown here), its No. 1 and No. 4 shows in the Nielsen ratings.
“We’re in a good place in negotiations,” Charlie Collier, the network’s CEO, insisted.
Fox does have the spin-off, “9-1-1: Lone Star,” but that’s still in the initial phase of its contract. The two pending shows are in the trickier renegotiation time.
While those hits are pending, “Welcome to Flatch” has been renewed. The droll comedy has drawn strong reviews, but low ratings – “9-1-1” averages four times as many viewers ages 18-49 and seven times as many viewers overall. Michael Thorn, the network president, said the “Flatch” producers have created a distinctive world. “We’re betting on their vision.”
Only three Fox shows have been cancelled so far – the comedy “Pivoting” and the dramas “The Big Leap” and “Our Kind of People.”
Instead, there has been shuffling: “Monarch” – planned for the current season – was moved to fall; the second seasons of a “Fantasy Island” reboot and “Lego Masters” – set for this summer – will be sometime next season.
The network’s most successful new show last season was Gordon Ramsay’s “Next Level Chef.” Now its second season will start right after the Super Bowl. “There’s such great promise to that show,” said Rob Wade, the network’s reality-show chief.
“The Masked Singer” remains Fox’s most-watched reality show, but it took a sharp drop in Nielsen ratings … plus criticism for having Rudy Giuliani as one of its masked singers. Wade offered “no regrets” for that: “ ‘The Masked Singer’ is all about jaw-dropping moments.”
His reality line-up has another new Ramsay show next season. Fox also has two new dramas and two new animated shows. The details:
— Returning dramas: “9-1-1: Lone Star,” “The Cleaning Lady.”
— Returning comedies: “Call Me Kat,” “Welcome to Flatch.”
— Returning animated shows: “The Simpsons,” “Family Guy,” “Bob’s Burgers,” “The Great North,” “Housebroken.”
— Returning unscripted: “The Masked Singer,” “Hell’s Kitchen,” “Crime Scene Kitchen” and “Next Level Chef,” which opens its season after the Super Bowl. Also, “Lego Masters,” moved from summer.
— New dramas: “Monarch,” with Susan Sarandon and Trace Adkins as head of a prominent country-music family; “Accused,” from the producers of “24” and “Homeland”; “Alert,” a missing-persons drama produced by Jamie Foxx and John Eisendrath (“The Blacklist”).
— New animation: “Grimsburg,” with Jon Hamm as producer and star; “Krapopolis,” from the “Rick and Morty” producer.
— New reality shows: “Food Stars,” a Ramsay show that searthes for a big-time food-and-drink entrepreneur.