Plans change for 'Simple'
Hilton-Richie show seeking new home
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Hoping to keep Hilton and Richie gainfully employed, producers Bunim-Murray and 20th Century Fox TV are now shopping the show around town; NBC and the WB are said to be interested.
Fox decided to cut "The Simple Life" loose after deciding it didn't need, and didn't have room, for the show.
"In January we have to accommodate two and a half hours of new programming with '24' and 'American Idol,' " the network said in a statement. "We also have completed episodes of both scripted and unscripted series in the wings... Collectively, we did not see a place for 'The Simple Life' on our schedule this season."
The soonest Fox could have gotten "The Simple Life" on was in the summer. But the show's conceit -- following Hilton and Richie as they learn how to become good wives -- may have been outdated at that point.
After all, the stars could have gotten married, divorced and remarried before the show ever aired. As it is, Hilton canceled her engagement to Paris Lastis before "Life" even started filming.
Insiders stressed that the Paris-Paris breakup didn't kill Fox's interest in "Life," nor did the ongoing public feud between former pals Hilton and Richie. Show is still scheduled to start shooting in November, and will still focus on a marriage theme, as Hilton looks for love and Richie plans her wedding.
"We believe this series... is still a dynamic and a valuable franchise," a "disappointed" 20th Century Fox said in a statement, while Bunim-Murray chairman Jon Murray said, "We have a hit series starring two of the most written-about women in the world... (we're) confident this situation will be remedied quickly."
