George Watson, a former Washington bureau chief, White House correspondent and vice president for ABC News, died Thursday, a network spokesperson announced. He was 86. After serving as a correspondent and bureau chief in Moscow and London, where he covered major events in Asia, Africa and the Middle East, Watson returned to the U.S. in 1975 as ABC News’ White House correspondent. A year later, he was named Washington bureau chief and vice president, a role he held two different times, spanning 12 years total.
John Rouse, who has been with The Walt Disney Co. for the past 33 years, most recently as EVP of affiliate relations for the ABC Television Network, is stepping down at the end of July. Rouse announced his upcoming retirement Wednesday in a note to ABC affiliates and station group heads. The position, which reports to Justin Connolly, president, Disney Platform Distribution, will be refilled.
The ABC show was a groundbreaking smash, but behind the scenes it devolved into such toxicity that even co-showrunner Damon Lindelof now says of his leadership: “I failed.” A powerful excerpt from the new book Burn It Down.
Earnings from traditional TV have fallen sharply after helping to offset Disney+ losses in recent years.
Exclusives
Not Dead Yet has lived up to its title: ABC has renewed Gina Rodriguez’ rookie sitcom for a second season. The network, as expected, also picked up The Conners for a sixth season, while punting a decision on remaining bubble shows Home Economics and The Rookie: Feds until “a later date.” On the unscripted side, ABC on Tuesday renewed America’s Funniest Home Videos (for Season 34), American Idol (for Season 7 on ABC and a 22nd season overall), The Bachelor (for Season 28), Bachelor in Paradise (for Season 9), Celebrity Wheel of Fortune (for Season 4), Celebrity Jeopardy! (for Season 2) and Shark Tank (for Season 15).
Three of ABC’s primetime dramas won’t make it to the 2023-24 schedule. On Friday, the Alphabet network canceled Big Sky, Alaska Daily and The Company You Keep.
Broadcasters — including their primary lobby group in Washington and affiliate associations — have told the FCC that if it does not extend its waiver of the requirement to provide oral descriptions of weather radar and other visual emergency information, they may have to cut back on those graphics for everyone.
The Season 2 finale of the ABC comedy series tallied 7 million viewers after seven days of multi-platform viewing, according to Nielsen data. That marks its best audience since the Feb. 8 Valentine’s Day episode, which scored a series-high 7.4M viewers in seven days. The seven-day audience is up about 4.2M from the 2.8M people who tuned in to the episode same-day. Among the ad-friendly 18-49 demographic, the Season 2 finale of Abbott Elementary hit a 2.47 rating in MP+7, which is up 366% compared to the episode’s 0.53 same-day rating. Just like total viewers, it’s also the highest multi-platform rating for the series since the Valentine’s Day episode managed a 2.49.
The move to bring the reality competition series back to the broadcast network comes after the show aired one season exclusively on streamer Disney+. For its upcoming season, the show will air on ABC while also streaming on Disney+. In addition, the show will be available the day after its linear debut on Hulu.
In a clear sign of broadcast’s evolving business realities, Fox has opted not to renew its highest rated scripted series, 9-1-1, produced by 20th Television. The upcoming Season 6 finale on May 15 will be its last episode on Fox. But it will not be a series finale for the first responder drama, from creators Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Tim Minear, which has been picked up by 20th TV sibling ABC and will join the Disney network’s lineup next season, making for one of the highest-profile series moves ever.
LONDON (AP) — Len Goodman, the urbane, long-serving judge on “Dancing with the Stars” and “Strictly Come Dancing,” has died, his agent said Monday. He was 78. Agent Jackie Gill […]
Station 19 is set to hit its 100th episode in the 2023-24 season after ABC renewed the first-responders drama series for a seventh season. The network also has confirmed that Zoanne Clack and Peter Paige will serve as showrunners and exec producers after Deadline revealed that Krista Vernoff was stepping down from Station 19 and Grey’s Anatomy, with the pair likely to step up.
ABC continues to shore up its lineup for the 2023-24 season. The network has picked up a seventh season of its medical drama The Good Doctor, marking the third renewal in as many days for the network. Earlier in the week, ABC renewed The Rookie and Will Trent for 2023-24. The Good Doctor is also poised to become a franchise, as ABC aired a backdoor pilot for a potential spinoff, titled The Good Lawyer, in March. Should it go to series, it will star Kennedy McMann and Felicity Huffman.
As expected, ABC has renewed The Rookie for its sixth season. The series will reach its 100th episode next season. The Nathan Fillion drama is in the Top 5 of ABC’s most-viewed scripted series and a great utility player. It ranks No. 1 in new its Tuesday 8 p.m. time period this season among adults 18-49 (tie).
TV’s nail-biting season has arrived. Although most of the cancellation headlines continue to be focused on the continuing purge at big streamers and premium cablers like Showtime, attention has begun to shift to the beleaguered Big 5 broadcasters as the May upfronts draw closer. While many in-limbo shows are a lock to return (NBC’s #OneChicago and Law & Order troikas and ABC’s Good Doctor, Station 19, The Conners and assorted Rookies), there are a handful of high-profile series on ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC and The CW that remain very much on the bubble.
As ABC’s General Hospital marks its 60th anniversary, much remains the same for the longest-running scripted series in production in the United States. A hospital is still the backdrop for the soap opera, many of the veteran characters remain, the wealthy Quatermaine family looms large and the stories are about love, mystery and adventure. But in a shift, many of the most powerful residents of Port Charles are women.
Abbott Elementary will finally reveal Janine’s mother on the ABC comedy’s April 12 episode, and even it’s Empire star Taraji P. Henson, who will play Vanetta on the hit comedy series.
“I do believe I could have done more,” Fleiss said about the franchise’s lack of diversity in light of the report surrounding his departure after 21 years with the ABC dating mainstay.
The Gina Rodriguez-led series drew more than 10 million viewers over five weeks of multiplatform viewing.
Grey’s Anatomy continues to write TV history with a renewal for a landmark 20th season, extending its record as the longest running primetime medical drama. Along with the pickup, which was fully expected, ABC also confirmed Deadline’s report that Meg Marinis will serve as showrunner for season 20. She replaces longtime Grey’s Anatomy and Station 19 showrunner Krista Vernoff, who is leaving both series at the end of this season.
ABC announced the anticipated release date for the Season 2 premiere of The Wonder Years, landing more than a year since executive producer and director Fred Savage — who starred in the original series — was fired from the show after multiple allegations of inappropriate conduct. The comedy series is set to return with a special one-hour premiere event starting 9 p.m. Wednesday, June 14.
The announcement last week that the 2023 Billboard Music Awards will be held on Sunday, Nov. 19, raised a few eyebrows because that had been the date earmarked for the 2023 American Music Awards. Both music award shows are produced by Dick Clark Productions. A date for the 2023 AMAs has not been announced and it turns out, neither has a network. The AMAs have been an ABC staple; the show was created by Dick Clark in 1973 for the network when ABC’s contract to air the Grammy Awards expired. ABC’s most recent deal for the AMAs ended with the November telecast, and no decision has been made about a contract renewal.
ABC is the second broadcast-TV network (following CBS) to unveil its full slate of (scripted) season and series finale dates, and the end of the Alphabet network’s 2022-23 season will begin on March 30, when the yet-to-be-renewed Alaska Daily puts its freshman season to bed.
Tyra Banks is ready to say goodbye to ABC’s Dancing With the Stars after three years hosting the ballroom-dancing competition series.
Long-running sports anthology series ABC’s Wide World of Sports will be inducted into the National Association of Broadcasters Broadcasting Hall of Fame at the 2023 NAB Show as this year’s television inductee. The show, […]
The 95th Academy Awards, which aired Sunday night on ABC, was viewed by an estimated 18.7 million, according to preliminary Nielsen numbers released Monday by ABC. That’s up 12% from last year’s show, but still low compared to most years. Above, host Jimmy Kimmel at the Oscars on Sunday, March 12, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. (Chris Pizzello/AP)
ABC’s new drama Will Trent put up decent on-air numbers for its series premiere and scored solid gains over seven days of delayed viewing. The show’s audience has mushroomed, however, with additional time and multiplatform viewing.
The Goldbergs’ journey through the 1980s is over. The family comedy’s current 10th season will be its last, with the May season finale serving as a series finale.
Kaitlin Olson is set to lead the drama pilot at ABC based on the French detective series HPI, Variety has learned. In addition, Rob Thomas (Veronica Mars, Party Down) has signed on to serve as showrunner while Alethea Jones (Dollface, Shining Vale) will direct and executive produce the pilot.
Celebrity Jeopardy finished its season on a high note. The championship final delivered a series high in both viewers and 18-49 demographic ratings for ABC in delayed viewing. After seven days of multiplatform viewing, the episode raked in an audience of about 5.8 million. That’s up about a million people from the live + same-day audience. In terms of the ad-friendly demo, the finale managed a 0.98 (up from a 0.69 in L+SD).
Although most of the canceled TV show headlines of late have been focused on the big streamers, attention will soon shift to the beleaguered Big 5 broadcasters as the May upfronts draw closer. Many in-limbo shows on the 2023 Renewal Scorecard are a lock to return, but there are a handful of high-profile series on ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC and The CW that remain very much on the bubble.
Wilmore is writing, executive producing and is set to star in Lately, described as a behind-the-scenes look at the upstairs-downstairs dynamics of the people who work at a latenight talk show, sources say.
The showrunner will exit at the end of the medical drama’s current 19th season and conclusion of the firefighter spinoff’s seventh season. There is no word on a new showrunner for both Shonda Rhimes-produced shows as ABC has yet to renew either. Sources say that Grey’s Anatomy, which is currently weathering the departure of leading lady Ellen Pompeo as a series regular, is likely to return for its landmark 20th season alongside spinoff Station 19.
