HI GUYS! It’s Upfronts week AND I AM A LITTLE STRESSED OUT. Cancelations, renewals, series orders, THERE IS JUST A WHOLE LOT GOING ON RIGHT NOW AND I NEED A SPA SESSION.
This post is an attempt to organize what we know about what Fox has in store for the fall season: all the new shows, all the renewed shows and, R.I.P. — all the canceled shows. News is fluid right now, so check back in as I will continue to update these posts.
Schedule
Fox’s fall schedule is below. New shows are in bold. All times Central Standard Time.
MONDAY
7 p.m. 9-1-1
8 p.m. PRODIGAL SON
TUESDAY
7 p.m. The Resident
8 p.m. Empire
WEDNESDAY
7 p.m. The Masked Singer
8 p.m. NOT JUST ME
THURSDAY
7 p.m. Thursday Night Football
FRIDAY
7 p.m. WWE Smackdown
SATURDAY
7 p.m. Fox Sports Saturday
SUNDAY
6 p.m. NFL on Fox
6:30 p.m. The OT
7 p.m. The Simpsons
7:30 p.m. BLESS THE HARTS
8 p.m. Bob’s Burgers
8:30 p.m. Family Guy
New Shows
Prodigal Son
Description from Fox:
From Emmy Award-nominated executive producers Greg Berlanti and Sarah Schechter (“Riverdale,” “The Flash”) and writers Chris Fedak (“Deception,” “Chuck”) and Sam Sklaver (“Deception,” “Bored to Death”), PRODIGAL SON is a fresh take on a crime franchise with a provocative and outrageous lead character and a darkly comedic tone. MALCOLM BRIGHT (Tom Payne, “The Walking Dead”) has a gift. He knows how killers think, how their minds work. Why? Back in the 1990s, his father was one of the best, a notorious serial killer called “The Surgeon.” That’s why Bright is the best criminal psychologist around; murder is the family business. He will use his twisted genius to help the NYPD solve crimes and stop killers, all while dealing with a manipulative mother, annoyingly normal sister, a homicidal father still looking to bond with his prodigal son and his own constantly evolving neuroses. Meet the happy family. DR. MARTIN WHITLY (Emmy Award and Golden Globe nominee Michael Sheen, “Masters of Sex,” “Frost/Nixon”) is intelligent, wealthy and charismatic, and also happens to be a predatory sociopath who killed at least 23 people. Bright’s mother, JESSICA WHITLY (Bellamy Young, “Scandal,” “Criminal Minds”), an elegant and WASPy New Yorker, wields sarcasm like a samurai sword and has an opinion on every aspect of Bright’s life. Perhaps Bright’s only ally is his sister, AINSLEY WHITLY (Halston Sage, THE ORVILLE), a TV journalist who wishes her brother would “take a break from murder” and have a normal life. Unfortunately for his sister, the only way Bright feels normal is by solving cases with the help of his longtime mentor, NYPD Detective GIL ARROYO (Emmy Award and Golden Globe nominee Lou Diamond Phillips, “Longmire,” “Stand and Deliver”). Arroyo’s one of the best detectives around, and he expects no less from his team – Detective DANI POWELL (Aurora Perrineau, “The Carmichael Show,” “Jem and the Holograms”), a headstrong no-nonsense cop who quickly becomes impressed with Bright’s work; and Detective JT TARMEL (Frank Harts, “The Path,” “Billions”), a born-and-bred New Yorker who questions whether Bright is a psychopath himself. So much for normal.
T’s Take:
So, basically Hannibal but with daddy issues.
Not Just Me
Description from Fox:
Executive producer Jason Katims (“Friday Night Lights,” “Parenthood”) and writer Annie Weisman (“About A Boy,” “Desperate Housewives”) bring you the story of an unusual family formed through extreme odds. Exploring such hot-button issues as identity, human connection and what it truly means to be a family, this unconventional dramedy taps directly into the zeitgeist, harnessing the emotional complications that new generations of IVF-bred children all face. Only child JULIA BECHLEY (Brittany Snow, the “Pitch Perfect” franchise, “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend”) finds her life turned upside down when her father, LEON BECHLEY (Academy Award winner Timothy Hutton, “American Crime,” “Leverage,” “Ordinary People”), reveals that, over the course of his prize-winning career as a pioneering fertility doctor, he used his own sperm to conceive upwards of a hundred children. Reeling from this explosive revelation, Julia discovers two new sisters – her former best friend, EDIE PALMER (Megalyn Echikunwoke, “The Following,” “90210”), and an ex-Olympic athlete, ROXY DOYLE (Emily Osment, “The Kominsky Method,” “Young & Hungry”). As these three young women begin to embrace their new reality, Julia must figure out what life is like without Leon by her side; Edie comes to grips with her burgeoning sexuality, as her marriage falters; and Roxy faces adulthood out of the spotlight. Against all odds, the three women will attempt to form an untraditional bond as sisters, even as they must welcome a tidal wave of new siblings into their rapidly expanding family.
T’s Take:
Speaking of daddy issues, this new series is based on the Australian series Sisters, which you can watch on Netflix. This feels more like an ABC or even CW series than a Fox series — which is just interesting, not a knock on the show. And I can’t resist a soapy drama.
Bless the Harts
Description from Fox:
Created and executive-produced by Emmy Award winner Emily Spivey (“The Last Man on Earth,” “Parks and Recreation,” “Saturday Night Live”), BLESS THE HARTS is a new half-hour animated comedy that follows the Harts, a Southern family that is always broke, and forever struggling to make ends meet. They one day hope to achieve the American dream, but they’re already rich – in friends, family and laughter. JENNY HART (Academy Award and Golden Globe nominee Kristen Wiig, “Bridesmaids,” “Saturday Night Live”) is a single mother supporting her family working as a waitress in the small town of Greenpoint, NC. While Jenny’s the head of her family, she’s often at odds with, or scheming with, her lottery scratcher-obsessed mother, BETTY (Emmy Award and Screen Actors Guild Award nominee Maya Rudolph, “The Good Place,” “Bridesmaids”), and her witty, creative daughter, VIOLET (Emmy Award nominee Jillian Bell, “Workaholics,” “Fist Fight”). Jenny’s doting, eternal optimist boyfriend of 10 years, WAYNE EDWARDS (Ike Barinholtz, “Neighbors,” “Blockers”), is the love of her life and a surrogate father to Violet. He’s a charming dreamer who may never hit the big time, but he’s not going to give up the fight. In the end, the Harts may not have much, but they may just have everything they need.
T’s Take:
Maya Rudolph + Kristen Wiig + Ike Barinholtz + Emily Spivey = YES, PLEASE.
Midseason
Duncanville
Description from Fox:
From Golden Globe winner Amy Poehler (“Parks and Recreation,” “Saturday Night Live”) and Emmy Award winners Mike and Julie Scully (THE SIMPSONS, “The Carmichael Show,” (“Parks and Recreation”) comes DUNCANVILLE, an animated family comedy centered around a spectacularly average 15-year-old boy with a rich fantasy life, and the people in his world. Like most 15-year-olds, DUNCAN (Poehler) can see adulthood on the horizon: money, freedom, cars, girls…but the reality is more like: always being broke, driving with your mom sitting shotgun and babysitting your little sister. He’s not exceptional, but he has a rich fantasy life where he’s never anything less than amazing. Duncan’s mom, ANNIE (Poehler), a parking enforcement officer who dreams of someday being a detective, lives in perpetual fear that her teenage son is one bad decision from ruining his life and will do anything to stop him from doing so. Duncan’s father, JACK (Emmy Award winner Ty Burrell, “Modern Family”), a classic-rock-obsessed plumber who’s determined to be a better dad than the one he had, is constantly posting on Facebook – and annoyed that his kids won’t “friend” him. Duncan’s younger sisters are 12-year-old KIMBERLY (Emmy Award nominee Riki Lindhome, “Garfunkel and Oates: Trying to be Special,” “Another Period”), an awkward, emotional girl who can hold grudges forever; and six-year-old JING, who adores her older brother maybe a little too much and whose catchphrase is, “Watch me!,” followed by the world’s slowest cartwheel. Helping Duncan navigate adolescence are his friends, class clown BEX (Betsy Sodaro, “Another Period,” “Disjointed”); trendy influencer YANGZI (Yassir Lester, “Making History”); aspiring troubled youth WOLF; and his on-again, off-again crush, MIA (Rashida Jones, “Parks and Recreation,” “Angie Tribeca”), who never met a cause she wouldn’t dedicate her life to. The coolest guy in their school is MR. MITCH (Wiz Khalifa, “American Dad!,” “BoJack Horseman”), the universally loved teacher/guidance counselor, and occasional gym coach and school nurse, due to budget cuts. Animated by Bento Box Entertainment (BOB’S BURGERS), DUNCANVILLE is in the long tradition of FOX Sunday night animation, and has just started production on a line of over-priced, shoddily produced merchandise for the whole family.
T’s Take:
It’s hard to judge without a single image much less a trailer, but all I need to know is “Amy Poehler.” Ty Burrell, Betsy Sodaro, Wiz Khalifa, and Riki Lindhome don’t hurt, either.
Outmatched
Description from Fox:
From writer/executive producer Lon Zimmet (“LA to Vegas”) comes OUTMATCHED, a multi-camera family comedy about a blue-collar couple in Atlantic City trying to raise four kids – three of whom just happen to be certified geniuses. For most parents, parenting is hard. But for CAY (Maggie Lawson, “Lethal Weapon,” “Psych”), a caustic, take-no-prisoners casino pit boss, and husband MIKE (Jason Biggs, “Orange Is the New Black,” the “American Pie” franchise), a handyman and uncultivated guy’s guy, parenting may as well be advanced calculus. Dealing with the demands and egos of three high-IQ children would be tricky for any parent, but it’s especially hazardous for two working stiffs who barely got through high school. Mike and Cay are committed to bringing some normalcy to their kids’ hectic, unconventional childhoods, but these geniuses don’t make it easy. Leading the charge is BRIAN (Connor Kalopsis, “The Grinder”), a condescending and pretentious 16-year-old math whiz, who thinks he already knows more about the world than Mike and Cay ever will, even though he’s never actually been out of New Jersey. His 15-year-old sister, NICOLE (Ashley Boettcher, “Lost in Oz”), is a deceptive and fiercely competitive language prodigy who can manipulate her parents into getting anything she wants. The youngest and most recently anointed child prodigy is MARC (Jack Stanton, “The Mick”), a 10-year-old music savant. Introverted and idiosyncratic, he just wants everyone to leave him alone, so he can become the next Beethoven in peace. The only child not driving their parents crazy is eight-year-old LEILA (Oakley Bull, “Beautiful Boy”), who is decidedly not a genius. In fact, she might be kind of dumb. She’s the only kid Mike and Cay even remotely understand. OUTMATCHED takes an honest and heightened look at every parent’s worst fear – that they’re “ruining” their kids. When you have children with the type of gifts that can change the world, the pressure is really on. Raise them right, and these kids could cure cancer, stop global warming or invent time travel. But screw it up, and you could unleash three new super villains into the universe – good luck!
T’s Take:
Young Sheldon x 3? No thank you, please.
The Great North
Description from Fox:
From executive producer Loren Bouchard (BOB’S BURGERS), animated comedy THE GREAT NORTH follows the Alaskan adventures of the Tobin family, as a single dad does his best to keep his weird bunch of kids close, especially as the artistic dreams of his only daughter lead her away from the family fishing boat and into the glamorous world of the local mall.
T’s Take:
I mean, there’s barely anything to go on here other than Bob’s Burgers — not even voice talent. This is a huge shrug.
Ultimate Tag
Description from Fox:
Hosted by football superstars and brothers JJ, TJ and Derek Watt, ULTIMATE TAG is a high-octane physical competition show based on the classic playground game of chase. The thrilling, energy-sapping competition will premiere in 2020.
T’s Take:
Wait, JJ has brothers? And they play football, too? I literally had no idea.
9-1-1: Lone Star
Description from Fox:
FOX’S #1 drama, 9-1-1, expands its reach to the city of Austin, TX, with new installment, 9-1-1: LONE STAR, starring Rob Lowe. 9-1-1: LONE STAR debuts with a special two-night event beginning Sunday, Jan. 19, following the NFC CHAMPIONSHIP, and continuing with its time period premiere on Monday, Jan. 20. From 9-1-1 co-creators Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Tim Minear, 9-1-1: LONE STAR follows a sophisticated New York cop (Lowe), who, along with his son, re-locates, and must try to balance saving those who are at their most vulnerable with solving the problems in his own life.
T’s Take:
If you like 9-1-1, but wish it had more Rob Lowe and white people who think they invented breakfast tacos, have I got the show for you!
Deputy
Description from Fox:
From writer/executive producer Will Beall (“Aquaman,” “Gangster Squad”) and director/executive producer David Ayer (“Training Day,” “End of Watch”), DEPUTY blends the spirit of a classic Western with a modern-day attitude and emotionally driven, visceral storytelling. Featuring an ensemble of ambitious and complicated human beings who won’t rest until justice is served, DEPUTY brings a gritty authenticity to the modern cop drama. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is one of the largest police forces in the world, but when the elected Sheriff dies, an arcane rule in the county charter, forged back in the Wild West, suddenly thrusts the most unlikely man into the job. That man is BILL HOLLISTER (Stephen Dorff, “True Detective,” “Star”). A fifth-generation lawman, Bill is only interested in justice; his soul wears a white hat. The bad guys don’t stand a chance, but neither do the politicos in the Hall of Justice. Under Bill’s command is a county-wide crew of LA’s finest, including Deputy CADE WARD (Brian Van Holt, “Cougar Town”), a former Marine stationed in Afghanistan, eight years sober and one of Bill’s few confidantes; Deputy RACHEL DELGADO (Siena Goines, “Andi Mack,” “Chase”), Walker’s partner, a meticulous officer who is knee-deep in a nasty divorce; Deputy BREANNA BISHOP (Bex Taylor-Klaus, “Arrow,” “Voltron”), the whip-smart, sarcastic driver in charge of Bill’s security detail; and Deputy JOSEPH BLAIR (Shane Paul McGhie, “What Men Want”). The dangers associated with the job often lead the police to LA County General Hospital, where Bill buts heads with Dr. PAULA REYES (Yara Martinez, “Jane the Virgin,” “True Detective”), the hospital’s chief trauma surgeon – and his wife. Given a job he never wanted, in an unfamiliar sea of politics, Bill quickly learns that doing what is expected and doing what is right are two different things, and that his innate, dogged pursuit of justice is the only skill the job truly requires.
T’s Take:
First of all, I’m legitimately happy Stephen Dorff is back. He was surprisingly great on True Detective last season and deserves to star in his own vehicle. And second of all, this seems like the right fit for him. This is not a series for me, personally, but I can see this one working out for Fox.
Filthy Rich
Description from Fox:
From writer/director Tate Taylor (“Ma,” “The Help,” “The Girl on the Train”) comes FILTHY RICH, a southern Gothic family drama in which wealth, power and religion intersect – more correctly, collide – with outrageously soapy results. Meet the Monreauxes, a mega-rich Southern family famed for creating a wildly successful Christian television network. On the cusp of launching a digital retail arm of the company, the family’s patriarch, EUGENE (Emmy Award winner Gerald McRaney, “This Is Us,” “24: Legacy”), dies in a plane crash (or so we think), leaving MARGARET (Emmy Award and Golden Globe nominee Kim Cattrall, “Sex and the City”), a now-“Oprah” to the religious and Southern communities, to take charge of the family business. Not surprisingly, Eugene’s apparent death greatly impacts the Monreaux children: ERIC (Corey Cott, “The Good Fight,” “Z: The Beginning of Everything”), the couple’s ambitious son, who assumes he will now run the show; and daughter ROSE (Aubrey Dollar, “Battle Creek”), a budding fashion designer, who constantly struggles to evade the vast shadow cast by her mother. If that wasn’t enough, the Monreauxes are
stunned to learn that Eugene fathered three illegitimate children, all of whom are written into his will. Now, Margaret must use her business savvy and Southern charm to control her newly legitimized heirs, whose very existence threatens the Monreaux family name and fortune: GINGER (Melia Kreiling, “Tyrant,” “The Borgias”), the tough-as-nails daughter of a Vegas cocktail waitress, whose life was virtually destroyed by Eugene’s rejection; ANTONIO (Benjamin Levy Aguilar, “Straight Outta Compton”), a single dad and boxer from Queens, NY; and JASON (Mark L. Young, “The Comeback,” “We’re the Millers”), another scion, who is not what he seems to be. With monumental twists and turns, not to mention lies, deceit and shade from every direction, FILTHY RICH presents a world in which everyone has an ulterior motive – and no one is going down without a fight. The series is based on the New Zealand format created by Filthy Productions Limited.
T’s Take:
A soapy melodrama about an TV evangelical family headed by Kim Cattrall? Fancy clothes? Bitches getting slapped? Gerald McRaney? Absolutely. Where do I sign?
neXt
Description from Fox:
From creator and executive producer Manny Coto (“24: Legacy”) and executive producers and directors John Requa and Glenn Ficarra (“This Is Us”), neXt is a propulsive, fact-based thriller about the emergence of a deadly, rogue artificial intelligence, a series that asks us to look closely not only at our relationship to technology, but to one another. Silicon Valley pioneer PAUL LEBLANC (Emmy Award nominee John Slattery, “Mad Men,” “Veep”) built a fortune and legacy on the world-changing innovations he dreamed up, while ignoring and alienating the people around him, including his own daughter, ABBY (Elizabeth Cappucino, “Jessica Jones,” “Deception”), and his short-sighted younger brother, TED (Jason Butler Harner, “Ozark,” “Ray Donovan”), who now runs Paul’s company. After discovering that one of his own creations – a powerful A.I. called neXt – might spell doom for humankind, Paul tried to shutter the project, only to be kicked out of the company by his own brother, leaving him with nothing but mounting dread about the fate of the world. When a series of unsettling tech mishaps points to a potential worldwide crisis, LeBlanc joins forces with Special Agent SHEA SALAZAR (Fernanda Andrade, “The First,” “Here and Now”). Having escaped crime, poverty and a deadly criminal father to remake herself as a force for good, Salazar’s strict moral code and sense of duty have earned her the respect of her team – a talented but contentious group held together by her faith in their ability to defy expectations and transcend their differences, including GINA (Eve Harlow, “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.,” “Heroes Reborn”), a high-strung cybercrime agent; BEN (Aaron Moten, “Disjointed,” “Mozart in the Jungle”), a straight-laced, buttoned-up hard worker, who is boring to the point of being interesting; and CM (Michael Mosley, “Ozark,” “Seven Seconds”), an ex-con hacker with a genius IQ. But the demands of Shea’s challenging job have taken their toll on her home life, where Salazar’s young son, OWEN (Evan Whitten, THE RESIDENT, “Mr. Robot”), has been raised primarily by his father, TY (Gerardo Celasco, “How to Get Away with Murder,” “The Haves and the Have Nots”), a recovering alcoholic. Now, LeBlanc and Salazar are the only ones standing in the way of a potential global catastrophe, fighting an emergent superintelligence that, instead of launching missiles, will deploy the immense knowledge it has gleaned from the data all around us to recruit allies, turn people against each other and eliminate obstacles to its own survival and growth. Marrying pulse-pounding action with a layered examination of how technology is invading our lives and transforming us in ways we don’t yet understand, neXt presents us with a villain unlike anything we’ve ever seen – one whose greatest weapon against us is ourselves.
T’s Take:
ALEXA IS GOING TO KILL US ALL AND I CAN’T WAIT.
Cancellations
- The Cool Kids
- The Gifted
- Gotham
- Lethal Weapon
- The Passage
- Proven Innocent
- Rel
- Star
Renewals
- 9-1-1
- Bob’s Burgers
- Empire
- Family Guy
- Last Man Standing
- The Masked Singer
- The Orville
- The Resident
- The Simpsons (for Seasons 31 and 32)
“Wait, JJ has brothers? And they play football, too?” Ahh, yes. The Watt brothers. JJ, TJ, and….Derek (who makes me irrationally angry because his middle name is John and somehow he doesn’t go by DJ). I bet his parents were furious. LOL