{"id":214296,"date":"2019-05-14T04:47:47","date_gmt":"2019-05-14T08:47:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/?p=214296"},"modified":"2019-05-14T04:47:47","modified_gmt":"2019-05-14T08:47:47","slug":"empire-to-get-1-more-season-on-fox-amid-schedule-shake-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/2019\/05\/14\/empire-to-get-1-more-season-on-fox-amid-schedule-shake-up\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Empire’ to get 1 more season on Fox amid schedule shake up"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\u201cEmpire\u201d companion drama \u201cStar\u201d is among the goners as the network makes room for an eclectic mix of wrestling, three new animated comedies and a \u201c9-1-1\u201d spinoff starring Rob Lowe. (File Photo<\/a>: @empirefox\/Instagram<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

NEW YORK \u2014 \u201cEmpire\u201d will return for its final season this fall on Fox \u2014 with Jussie Smollett a question mark \u2014 and should count itself lucky.<\/p>\n

Fox, the lowest-rated network among the big four broadcasters, is hitting the reset button for the 2019-20 season by cancelling eight shows and adding 10 new ones.<\/p>\n

\u201cEmpire\u201d companion drama \u201cStar\u201d is among the goners as the network makes room for an eclectic mix of wrestling, three new animated comedies and a \u201c9-1-1\u201d spinoff starring Rob Lowe.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are turning the final season of ‘Empire’ into a large television event,\u201d Fox Entertainment CEO Charlie Collier told a teleconference Monday. \u201cOne of the great benefits of announcing a final season is that you actually allow the fans to lean in and have the ending they deserve.\u201d<\/p>\n

Collier dodged questions about Smollett’s future with the show. The actor was accused of staging an attack last January in which he said two masked men beat him, hurled racist and homophobic slurs at him, doused him with a chemical substance and put a rope around his neck. Criminal charges were dropped but the uproar has yet to subside, making Smollett a continued publicity liability for Fox.<\/p>\n

When pressed, Collier said there is an option to include him in the series \u201cbut at this point we have no plans for that.\u201d<\/p>\n

A spokesman for Smollett didn’t immediately reply to a request for comment.<\/p>\n

As for \u201cStar,\u201d which had been paired on the schedule with \u201cEmpire,\u201d it fell victim to Fox’s prime-time schedule, which is an hour shorter per night than the other networks, Collier said. The network also wanted to give \u201cEmpire\u201d a strong send-off by pairing it with returning medical drama \u201cThe Resident,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Fox was split from sibling studio 20th Century Fox Television after Walt Disney Co. purchased the studio and other major assets of Rupert Murdoch’s media empire. But Collier, in a strenuously upbeat statement, said today \u201cmarks a beginning for Fox Entertainment\u201d as it works with a variety of studios for its new shows.<\/p>\n

\u201cFox is not only open for business but we feel like we’re stronger than ever,\u201d Collier said.<\/p>\n

He gave much the same pep talk later Monday to a theatre filled with ad buyers, then asked stars from the new series to take a bow and required that they describe their projects in five words, apparently Fox’s version of haiku poetry.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis time, there’s no virgins,\u201d Tori Spelling offered for the \u201cBeverly Hills, 90210\u201d reboot, titled \u201cBH90210\u201d and set to debut this summer.<\/p>\n

While the network is emphasizing it’s still in the series game, the presentation went heavy on sports: A succession of analysts and hosts, including Terry Bradshaw and Michael Strahan, touted upcoming game coverage. The network even worked a football legend into a mini-performance of \u201cThe Masked Singer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hidden inside a deer costume, he gamely tackled \u201cLuck Be a Lady Tonight,\u201d and the show’s panelists were asked to guess his identity.<\/p>\n

After speculating that the mystery man wasn’t really a singer and mulling the clues provided, Jenny McCarthy proved her detective skills: It was Joe Namath.<\/p>\n

\u2014\u2014\u2014<\/p>\n

THE VOICES ARE FAMILIAR<\/p>\n

Fox has long been known for its animated comedies, most notably \u201cThe Simpsons,\u201d and is betting viewers want more. To sweeten the deal, three shows will include actors known for their on-screen work.<\/p>\n

\u201cBless the Harts,\u201d about a Southern family that’s poor but rich in friends and relations, will debut this fall with Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph and Mary Steenburgen in its voice cast. It’s created by Emily Spivey, whose credits include \u201cThe Last Man on Earth.\u201d<\/p>\n

Later-season entries include \u201cThe Great North,\u201d from \u201cBob’s Burgers\u201d creator Loren Bouchard and featuring the voices of Nick Offerman, Megan Mullally, Jenny Slate and Will Forte in the tale of a single Alaska dad and his kids. \u201cDuncanville,\u201d about an imaginative teenage boy and his father, includes Amy Poehler, Ty Burrell and Rashida Jones in its voice cast.<\/p>\n

Asked why Fox isn’t fielding a live-action sitcom this fall, Fox Entertainment President Michael Thorn said it does have a \u201csignature\u201d comedy in \u201cBless the Harts.\u201d<\/p>\n

There will be a new multi-camera comedy in midseason, \u201cOutmatched,\u201d starring Jason Biggs and Maggie Lawson as a blue-collar couple raising four kids, three of them genius-level, and \u201cLast Man Standing\u201d with Tim Allen will be back then as well.<\/p>\n

I KNOW THAT FACE<\/p>\n

Television veteran Rob Lowe will star in a new iteration of \u201c9-1-1,\u201d the drama whose producers include the prolific Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk (\u201cAmerican Horror Story\u201d and more). In the midseason \u201c9-1-1: Lone Star,\u201d Lowe plays a New York City police officer who re-locates to Austin, Texas, with his son.<\/p>\n

Fellow TV stalwart Kim Cattrall (\u201cSex and the City\u201d) stars in \u201cFilthy Rich,\u201d described as a gothic Southern family drama that mixes wealth, power and religion with \u201coutrageously soapy results,\u201d while John Slattery (\u201cMad Men\u201d) headlines \u201cneXt\u201d as a Silicon Valley pioneer trying to stop his dangerous A.I. creation. Both are midseason entries, along with \u201cDeputy,\u201d starring Stephen Dorff as a fifth-generation lawman.<\/p>\n

Two new dramas will debut this fall. \u201cNot Just Me,\u201d from producer Jason Katims (\u201cFriday Night Lights,\u201d \u201cParenthood\u201d) stars Timothy Hutton as a fertility doctor run amok, with Brittany Snow playing a daughter who deals with the aftermath. \u201cProdigal Son\u201d stars Tom Payne (\u201cThe Walking Dead\u201d) as a crimebuster with a dark family history, courtesy of his dad (Michael Sheen, \u201cMasters of Sex\u201d).<\/p>\n

SO LONG, PAL<\/p>\n

If misery loves company, then the makers and cast of \u201cStar,\u201d including Jude Demorest and Queen Latifah, and \u201cLethal Weapon\u201d and star Damon Wayans are far from alone.<\/p>\n

Other series cancelled by Fox: Kelsey Grammer’s \u201cProven Innocent\u201d; comedy \u201cThe Cool Kids,\u201d which starred veterans including David Alan Grier and Vicki Lawrence; \u201cThe Gifted,\u201d set in Marvel’s \u201cX-Men\u201d universe; reality series \u201cLove Connection\u201d with host Andy Cohen; sci-fi drama \u201cThe Passage,\u201d and sitcom \u201cRel\u201d with Lil Rel Howery.<\/p>\n

GOOD SPORTS<\/p>\n

Murdoch himself has rejected predictions that Fox will evolve into a news and sports outlet, minus series. But any network is happy to air the Super Bowl, TV’s biggest audience draw, and it belongs to Fox in 2020.<\/p>\n

Eric Shanks, Fox Sports CEO and executive producer, said they’re aiming for an early ad-sales kickoff. A previously announced decision to reduce commercial breaks by tightening up the inventory of the more valuable ad spots should help, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe’re having constant communication with the people who are returning from the last time we had the Super Bowl, and I would say that the early conversations are really encouraging for the market to get started,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Fox also is touting the arrival of \u201cWWE’s Smackdown Live,\u201d a weekly two-hour program that will air year-round beginning Oct. 4.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

NEW YORK \u2014 \u201cEmpire\u201d will return for its final season this fall on Fox \u2014 with Jussie Smollett a question …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":44,"featured_media":214297,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,106],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-214296","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","category-hollywood","mauthors-lynn-elber","mauthors-the-associated-press"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/214296","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/44"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=214296"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/214296\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":214298,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/214296\/revisions\/214298"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/214297"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=214296"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=214296"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=214296"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}