USA Network’s “blue sky” series of the 2000s and early 2010s are having a moment this year between Suits‘ blockbuster run on Netflix, which broke streaming records and led to a potential offshoot series at NBC, and the Monk reunion movie, which premieres today on Peacock and already is getting awards recognition. Now the brand is making its way back to where it started, on the USA Network. NBCUniversal’s ad-supported cable net is plotting a return to original scripted programming with light, frothy character-based procedurals in the mold of the lineup from the “blue sky”era that included Monk, Burn Notice, Psych, Royal Pains, White Collar and Suits.
WWE Commentary Shakeup: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett Move To ‘Raw,’ Cole To Also Remain On ‘SmackDown’
As it turns out, USA Network really wants The Big D. The cabler has picked up the dating competition series after it was scrapped by TBS last year. It’s now set to premiere on Wednesday, June 14, at 10 ET, following the return of Temptation Island.
Blake Shelton and Carson Daly are brewing up impressive ratings at USA Network with their new game show, Barmageddon. The series premiere, which aired on Dec. 5, was the network’s most-viewed series premiere in nearly three years with 1.2M total viewers, according to live-plus-3-day Nielsen data. That’s about an 81% increase from the same-day audience, which is a record delayed viewing lift for USA Network’s unscripted programming. The episode also scored the network’s best premiere rating among the 18-49 demo in more than three years.
Exclusives
USA Network is keeping its long-running reality series Chrisley Knows Best on the air despite fraud convictions for two of its stars. Todd and Julie Chrisley were convicted Tuesday on federal charges of bank fraud and tax evasion following a three-week trial. A jury found the couple guilty of conspiring to defraud community banks out of more than $30 million in loans, conspiring to defraud the IRS and tax evasion, as presented by federal prosecutors in Atlanta. Julie Chrisley was also convicted on charges of wire fraud and obstruction of justice. Through their attorneys, the Chrisleys said they plan to appeal the verdict.
The USA Network reality TV stars were initially indicted in August 2019 and a new indictment was filed in February of this year. Their trial began three weeks ago, and a jury on Tuesday found them guilty of conspiring to defraud community banks out of more than $30 million in fraudulent loans, according to the office of U.S. Attorney Ryan Buchanan in Atlanta. They were also found guilty of conspiring to defraud the IRS and tax evasion, and Julie Chrisley was convicted of wire fraud and obstruction of justice.
Magnum P.I. is looking to join an elite group of popular broadcast series that have overcome shocking cancellations to continue their runs. No one is commenting, but I hear talks are underway for NBC and/or USA Network to potentially carry the series starring Jay Hernandez. An arrangement still is being figured out, but I hear one scenario is for new episodes to air on NBC while USA would run previous seasons of the action drama, a reboot of the 1980s series that starred Tom Selleck
9-1-1 has been acquired by NBCUniversal’s USA Network and the drama about first responders in Los Angeles will start airing in a four-hour primetime block on Wednesday, Jan. 5. The deal between NBCUniversal Television and Streaming and Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution covers all four existing seasons of the show — which stars Angela Bassett, Peter Krause and Jennifer Love Hewitt — as well the current fifth season and any upcoming seasons. The current season will debut on USA later this year.
NBCUniversal said several of its NBC Sports franchises will be finding new homes on cable on USA Network in 2022, including Premier League soccer, NASCAR and IndyCar races. The shift comes as the company shuts down the NBCSN cable network at the end of the year. Some sports programming will also be appearing on CNBC and Peacock.
Once an icon of cable TV’s money-minting powers, USA Network today symbolizes the industry’s long slide in the face of relentless cord cutting. Now, it’s becoming a crucial test of how much more cash can be wrung from the declining pay TV business.
For the past 18 months, the brain trust at USA Network has been focused on finding a solution to a marketing dilemma: How to freshen the brand of a general entertainment channel in an on-demand world. The team led by Alexandra Shapiro, marketing and digital EVP for the entertainment group at NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment, did extensive market research about the cultural mood of its target audience and focus-group testing of numerous concepts before settling on the network’s first new tagline since 2005: “We the Bold.”
NEW YORK (AP) — On camera, the family on USA’s “Chrisley Knows Best” has briefly addressed son Kyle’s second-season absence, saying he’s “going through a difficult time.” Off camera, the […]
