Fox has 3 new shows on fall schedule

— Fox is promising changes to underperforming competition shows "American Idol" and "The X Factor" and trying to breathe new life into "Glee" by moving it to a new night and adding guest stars Kate Hudson and Sarah Jessica Parker.

The network will add two comedies to its schedule in the fall, turning Tuesday into a sitcom night, and will add one drama. Fox on Monday became the second broadcast network to announce next season's schedule, following NBC on Sunday.


"This year was a bigger drop-off than we anticipated," said Fox Entertainment President Kevin Reilly. He said "Idol" made no changes from last year, and there was little "urgency to view" at the beginning of the season.

He promised changes for next season, but he wouldn't give any details.

"There's a lot of life left in it," he said.

Simon Cowell's "The X-Factor" did well in the fall, but it didn't live up to the creator's inflated expectations. Shortly after the season ended, judges Paula Abdul and Nicole Scherzinger and host Steve Jones were dispatched.



Once a sensation, "Glee" saw its viewership drop by 21 percent this season. It will move to Thursday nights and a comfortable 9 p.m. ET time slot following "The X Factor" in the fall. Reilly said the show is "poised for a creative renaissance," and has Hudson and Parker lined up for multi-episode guest slots.



The fall's only new drama is "The Mob Doctor" on Monday night, about a young doctor who has to pay off her family's lifelong debt to the Chicago mob.

Actor Kevin Bacon has signed on for a drama that will air in midseason that Reilly called "the new `24.'" The show, "The Following," features Bacon as a former FBI agent asked to uncover a network of alliances between serial killers.

Another comedy focused on a family, "The Goodwin Games," is due at midseason and stars actor Scott Foley of "Felicity" and "Grey's Anatomy."


Fox has also made changes to its long-running Saturday night lineup, where "COPS" won't return until midseason. In the fall, Fox will present live sports events like college football and NASCAR races that night.

The Associated Press


