Welcome to the Upfronts, the networks’ annual declaration of what they will be airing in the fall. This post is an attempt to organize what we know about what NBC 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.
I’m not saying that the networks are back, baby! But I am cautiously optimistic that the networks are feeling a little more hopeful about their overall health. Take NBC, for instance. A year ago, NBC canceled six scripted series, ordered only one new fall series — an ill-advised Jimmy Fallon reality competition — and cleared an entire night of programming for NBA games. This year, NBC has ordered two new scripted series for the fall, a comedy and a drama! Sure, NBA games still own Tuesday nights, and I doubt that will ever change, and the rest of the schedule is full of your Law & Orders, and Chicago series, and The Voice, but two new scripted fall series from zero new scripted fall series is a move in a positive direction.
Look, we have to take what we can get.
Schedule
MONDAY (Sept./Oct.)
7/8 p.m.: The Voice
9/10 p.m.: LINE OF FIRE
MONDAY (November)
7/8 p.m.: St. Denis Medical
7:30/8:30 p.m.: The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins
8/9 p.m.: The Voice
9/10 p.m.: LINE OF FIRE
TUESDAY
7/8 p.m.: NBA
WEDNESDAY
7/8 p.m.: Chicago Med
8/9 p.m.: Chicago Fire
9/10 p.m.: Chicago P.D.
THURSDAY
7/8 p.m.: THE TRAITORS
8/9 p.m.: Law & Order: SVU
9/10 p.m.: Law & Order
FRIDAY
7/8 p.m.: Happy’s Place
7:30/8:30 p.m.: NEWLYWEDS
8/9 p.m.: Dateline NBC
SATURDAY
7/8 p.m.: College football
SUNDAY
6/7 p.m.: Football Night in America
7:20/8:20 p.m.: NBC Sunday Night Football
New Fall Shows
Line of Fire
Official synopsis:
A family of law enforcement agents bridges personal differences and crosses professional boundaries as they tackle cases for the FBI, US Marshals, Secret Service and Department of Justice. After a seemingly cut-and-dry case turns into a deadly conspiracy, they must use the expertise from a lifetime of protecting civilians and politicians to protect one another and bring the killer to justice … even if it means betraying their sworn code.
The series stars Peter Krause, Hope Davis, Kat Cunning, Tommy O’Brien, Taylor Bloom and Charlie Barnett.
T’s Take:
A crime series but make it a family drama — sorta sounds like Blue Bloods, but for a younger audience who is looking for something a little sexier. It’s a great cast and has potential.
Newlyweds
Official synopsis:
A later-in-life love story about a free-spirited woman and a buttoned-up professor who marry impetuously after a whirlwind courtship.
The series stars Téa Leoni and Tim Daly with Jamie Lee Curtis as a recurring guest star.
T’s Take:
First of all, how dare you suggest that Téa Leoni is “later in life,” but second, I remember this show when it was called Dharma and Greg. (Fun little fact about this series: Téa Leoni and Tim Daly are married in real life and met on the set of Madam Secretary.)
The Traitors
Official synopsis:
“The Traitors” is coming to NBC with an all-new civilian version of Peacock’s Emmy Award-winning competition reality series known for strategic gameplay and skillful saboteurs.
In this brand-new iteration of “The Traitors” for NBC, Emmy-winning host Alan Cumming is opening the doors of his now infamous castle in the Scottish Highlands to everyday Americans. From among them he will choose who will play as Traitors and who must survive as Faithful. “The Traitors” is a nail-biting psychological adventure in which treachery and deceit are the name of the game. Set at an ancient castle deep in the Scottish Highlands, contestants work together on a series of exhilarating missions to build a prize fund worth up to $250,000. Hidden amongst the Faithful are the Traitors, whose goal is to eliminate the Faithful and claim the prize for themselves. Under the cover of darkness, the Traitors murder the Faithful one by one in a treacherous spree while the Faithful try to uncover the Traitors and banish them from the game. If at the end of the game the remaining Faithful contestants have banished all the Traitors, they share the prize fund, but if a Traitor (or Traitors) is still among them, they win all the money.
T’s Take:
This just makes so much sense to me, and I wonder why the networks haven’t done more crosspollination with their networks and more successful streaming programs. All of the major networks have a streaming sibling, but all of the programming seems to go from network to streamer instead of the other direction, as they are trying to draw traditional cable and broadcast viewers to the streaming services. But why not do something to encourage cord-cutters to return to broadcast TV? If they were smart, they would delay the rebroadcast of this season of The Traitors on Peacock just long enough to encourage fans of the show to watch it on NBC. (But they won’t.)
Midseason
The Rockford Files
Official synopsis:
A contemporary update on the classic series of the same name. Newly paroled after doing time for a crime he didn’t commit, James Rockford returns to his life as a private investigator using his charm and wit to solve cases around Los Angeles. It doesn’t take long for his quest for legitimacy to land him squarely in the crosshairs of both local police and organized crime.
The series stars David Boreanaz, Michaela McManus, Felix Solis and Jacki Weaver.
T’s Take:
What took them so long? We’ll have to wait and see if David Boreanaz has the same charm as James Garner (I’m skeptical), but The Rockford Files is a classic just waiting to be remade.
Sunset P.I.
Official synopsis:
Continues the proud tradition of Los Angeles private eyes that began with Philip Marlowe and will end with this show.
The series stars Jake Johnson, Jane Levy, Langston Kerman, Mary Shalaby and Keith David.
T’s Take:
So the creators of this detective series are Dan Goor and Luke Del Tredici, the guys who created the beloved Brooklyn Nine-Nine which is reason enough to give this series a chance. But you add to that the wonderful Jake Johnson, Keith David, and Jane Levy (who doesn’t get nearly enough work) and this is going to be one of those shows I fall in love with only to have it canceled after one, maybe two seasons.
Wordle
Official synopsis:
A game show series based on “Wordle,” the globally beloved word game from The New York Times Games.
T’s Take:
I’m old enough to remember when RuPaul hosted this on CBS, and they called it Lingo.
Cancellations
- Brilliant Minds
- On Brand with Jimmy Kimmel
- Stumble
Renewals
- Chicago Fire
- Chicago Med
- Chicago P.D.
- Deal or No Deal Island
- The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins
- Happy’s Place
- Law & Order
- Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
- St. Denis Medical
- The Voice
Shows Still Up in the Air
- The Hunting Party
- The Wall