NBC clears way for fall trio

UPFRONTS: NBC has axed a host of series to make way for three new shows, including a drama from the producers of The Blacklist and a comedy from the co-creator of Parks & Recreation.

Robert Greenblatt

Timeless, The Good Place and This Is Us will air on NBC this fall and the network subsequently moved four existing series, including Blindspot and Chicago Med, to different time periods.

Sony Pictures Television, Davis Entertainment (The Blacklist), Kripke Enterprises and MiddKid Productions are behind action drama Timeless, in which a mysterious villain steals a time machine in order to rewrite history.

The Good Place is a sitcom from Universal Television, 3 Arts Entertainment and Michael Schur, exec producer of Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Parks & Recreation and The Office.

20th Century Fox Television is producing This is Us, an ensemble dramedy about a group of people whose lives intertwine. It stars Mandy Moore, Milo Ventimiglia and Sterling K Brown.

Mysteries of Laura, the remake of the Spanish series of the same name that concluded its second season in March, is among the shows the US network has cancelled. The others are Crowded, Game of Silence, Heartbeat, Undateable and the Eva Longoria-produced Telenovela.

New series set to debut in the spring include: Taken; a spin-off to the Liam Neeson feature; Midnight, Texas, based on the book series by Charlaine Harris; Emerald City, a dark reimagination of The Wizard of Oz; and spin-off The Blacklist: Redemption.

NBC is also readying alternative series with remakes of UK formats The Wall and First Dates, as well as new episodes of The New Celebrity Apprentice.

Returning shows for the 2016-17 season include The Blacklist, Blindspot, Chicago Fire, Chicago Med, Chicago PD, Grimm, Hollywood Game Night, Law & Order: SVU, Little Big Shots, Shades of Blue, Superstore and The Voice.

Continuing NBC’s emphasis on event programming, the 2016-17 season will feature one-time-only broadcasts including Dolly Parton’s Christmas of Many Colors: Circle of Love, Hairspray Live and Aaron’s Sorkin’s A Few Good Men Live!.

“The level of creative talent and stars who come to NBC is reflective of our leadership position in broadcast television, our sophisticated and upscale approach to all genres of programming, and our stable line-up,” said Robert Greenblatt, chairman of NBC Entertainment.

NBC fall 2016/17 schedule (new shows in caps)

MONDAY
20.00-22.00 – The Voice
22.00-23.00 – TIMELESS

TUESDAY
20.00-21.00 – The Voice
21.00-22.00 – THIS IS US
22.00-23.00 – Chicago Fire

WEDNESDAY
20.00-21.00 – Blindspot
21.00-22.00 – Law & Order: SVU
22.00-23.00 – Chicago PD

THURSDAY
20.00-20:30 – Superstore
20:30-21:00 – THE GOOD PLACE
21.00-22.00 – Chicago Med
22.00-23.00 – The Blacklist

FRIDAY
20.00-21.00 – Caught on Camera with Nick Cannon
21.00-22.00 – Grimm
22.00-23.00 – Dateline NBC

SATURDAY
20.00-22.00 – Saturday Dateline Mysteries
22.00-23.00 – Saturday Night Live (encores)

SUNDAY
19.00-20:20 – Football Night in America
20:20-23.00 – NBC’s Sunday Night Football

Midseason: GREAT NEWS, POWERLESS, TRIAL & ERROR, MARLON, CHICAGO JUSTICE, THE BLACKLIST: REDEMPTION, MIDNIGHT, TEXAS.