ABC calls it “unprecedented stability”; viewers might call it “same old, same old.”
Either way, the trend is clear: The fall schedule that ABC announced Tuesday (May 17) has few new shows. The same was true of the ones that NBC and Fox announced Monday.
ABC has only three new ones, and two sound terribly familiar – a “Rookie” spin-off starring Niecy Nash and a series version of “Celebrity Jeopardy.”
That leaves only one totally new show, which brings some solid credentials: “Alaska” (shown here) is written by Oscar-winner Tom McCarthy (“Spotlight”) and stars two-time Oscar-winner Hilary Swank as a disgraced reporter, trying to re-start her life at a newspaper in Anchorage.
That theme – a woman re-starting her life – is also part of the only new show ABC has announced for mid-season. “Not Dead Yet” has Gina Rodriguez as a woman coming out of a divorce and re-starting her career after a 10-year gap; the only job she can get is writing obituaries.
It joins a large pile of current shows waiting for mid-season – “The Wonder Years,” “A Million Little Things,” “American Idol,” “Judge Steve Harvey” and “The Bachelor.”
First, however, ABC will fill our autumn with lustful people who look good in swimwear. With “Dancing With the Stars” moving to Disney+, “Bachelor in Paradise” – usually a late-summer show – will take up two-hour slots this fall on both Mondays and Tuesday
That wipes out the Tuesday comedy slots, but “Abbott Elementary” will move to 9 p.m. Wednesdays, nudging “The Conners” to 8 p.m. and “The Goldbergs” to 8:30. “Big Sky” gets 10 p.m. The line-up:
–Mondays: “Bachelor in Paradise,” 8 p.m.; “The Good Doctor,” 10.
— Tuesdays: “Bachelor in Paradise,” 8 p.m.; “The Rookie: Feds,” 10.
— Wednesdays: “The Conners,” 8 p.m.; “The Goldbergs,” 8:30; “Abbott Elementary,” 9; “Home Economics,” 9:30; “Big Sky,” 10.
— Thursdays: “Station 19,” 8 p.m.; “Grey’s Anatomy,” 9; “Alaska,” 10.
— Fridays: “Shark Tank,” 8 p.m.; “20/20,” 9-11.
— Saturdays: College football.
— Sundays: “America’s Funniest Home Videos,” 7 p.m.; “Celebrity Jeopardy,” 8; “Celebrity Wheel of Fortune,” 9; “The Rookie,” 10.