Fox announced its Fall 2014 schedule early Monday, providing TV watchers with some surprising decisions. The network has decided to break up its Sunday night “Animation Domination” lineup by putting Andy Samberg’s acclaimed Brooklyn Nine-Nine in between animated comedies. It has also set the anticipated Gotham series for Mondays.
“Our portfolio of content this year reflects the biggest investment in programming we’ve ever made,” Fox Entertainment Chairman Kevin Reilly said in a statement. “Fox is redefining the network experience on our air and as a 24/7/365 platform, with distinctive series, addictive event dramas and can’t-miss live specials that will deliver broadcast’s most youthful audience at scale.”
“The new series and specials we’re presenting today feature buzzworthy worlds and characters that we think will be the most talked about, liked, tweeted and shared of the season,” Fox COO Joe Early added.
Fox has been the most aggressive of the four networks with limited series, starting with 24: Live Another Day, which kicked off this month. This fall’s event series will be Gracepoint, based on the hit U.K. series Broadchurch. The crime drama will run 10 episodes and stars David Tennant and Anna Gunn. It’s set to air on Thursdays after Bones.
Utopia will be Fox’s two-night fall reality show, since The X Factor no longer exists. It’s about 15 Americans who have to spend a year in an undeveloped, isolated part of the world. It has been scheduled for Tuesdays and Fridays.
Red Band Society with Octavia Spencer will also debut in the fall. It’s a drama from executive producer Steven Spielberg and will air on Wednesdays.
Gotham, the new Batman prequel series, will air on Mondays, acting as a lead-in to Sleepy Hollow.
However, the main surprise from Fox was a shake-up of its Sunday lineup. Since Tuesdays have been low-rated across the board, the network is hoping that Brooklyn Nine-Nine might get a bigger audience if it airs alongside The Simpsons and Family Guy. Mulaney, a new comedy, will also air on Sundays.
Here’s the full Fox schedule, with new shows in bold:
Monday:
8-9: Gotham
9-10: Sleepy Hollow
Tuesday:
8-9: Utopia
9-9:30: New Girl
9:30-10: The Mindy Project
Wednesday:
8-9: Hell’s Kitchen
9-10: Red Band Society
Thursday:
8-9: Bones
9-10: Gracepoint
Friday:
8-9: Masterchef Junior
9-10: Utopia
Saturday: Collect Football
Sunday:
NFL coverage
7:30-8: The OT/Bob’s Burgers
8-8:30: The Simpsons
8:30-9: Brooklyn Nine-Nine
9-9:30: Family Guy
9:30-10: Mulaney
The following shows have been held back for mid-season: Backstrom, Bordertown, Empire, Hieroglyph, The Last Man on Earth, Wayward Pines, Weird Londers, Glee and American Idol.
top image courtesy of ©2013 Fox Broadcasting Co. Cr: FOX