Fox firms up spring lineup plans
Net bringing back original segs of hit shows
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Meanwhile, life continues to return to normal in post-strike TV land. "My Name Is Earl" has become the first sitcom to resume production, with others expected to fall in line shortly.
"Earl" joins fellow 20th Century Fox skein "Boston Legal" as the first shows to resume lensing after scribes returned to work last week.
"It really speaks to the two showrunners involved, in 'Earl's' Greg Garcia and 'Boston Legal's' David E. Kelley," said 20th Century Fox TV chairman Gary Newman. "They're fast, organized and aggressive. They see the value in getting into production as quickly as possible."
As a result, "Earl," which airs on NBC, will still produce as many as 20 segs this season, while "Boston Legal" could ultimately produce 21.
As for Fox's Tuesday announcement, net has also moved up the launch date of frosh drama "Canterbury's Law," which will now bow at 8 p.m. on March 10 (rather than on April 14, as most recently planned).
Decision to accelerate the "Canterbury's Law" launch comes as Fox has opted to air new segs of "House" on Mondays at 9 starting April 28.
"House" had already gone back into production, but Fox had been mulling whether to air those segs this season or hold them back for fall. Net decided on the former.
Also, new segs of "Bones" bow April 14 at 8 p.m. That means Fox's Monday night series -- both of which aired on Tuesday in the fall -- will be all original in time for May sweeps.
Meanwhile, Fox has also decided to put laffers "Back to You" and "'Til Death" back into production. Fox already had two originals of "Back to You" left in the can (slated for Feb. 26 and 27) and one more of "'Til Death" (set for March 25).
Now, post-strike episodes of "'Til Death" bow April 16 at 8 p.m., followed by "Back to You" at 8:30 (a flip from how they aired in the fall).
Other shows returning for production on future segs include "24" (which returns in January), "The Simpsons," "Family Guy" and "American Dad."
As previously announced, Fox also has original segs of "Hell's Kitchen" on tap this April and will be premiering skeins "Unhitched," "New Amsterdam" and "The Return of Jezebel James" in March.
