Upfronts 2015 Playlist: comedy

Eighteen new comedies were picked up by the US broadcast networks at the Upfronts in New York this week and C21’s latest Hot Properties Playlist has them all.

The playlist is available to view through the C21Screenings portal and the C21Screen app or simply click on the clips below (note, some may be unavailable to view in some territories).

As in drama, NBC has the most new comedy titles – six in all – and yet the big surprise was that only one, People Are Talking, will debut this fall, meaning the Peacock features just a single hour of the genre in primetime each week.

Over at ABC it’s a different story, with four new comedies (Dr Ken and The Muppets landing this autumn) and four returning, meaning the Mouse offers the most scope for mirth-making.

CBS picked up two new titles, one of which, Life In Pieces, is getting a major boost with a Monday night lead-in from The Big Bang Theory – TV’s biggest comedy.

Fox is going all in on Tuesdays, with three of its five new comedies – Grandfathered, Grinder and, perhaps its biggest gamble, Scream Queens – all lining up one after the other on the night.

If you would like to submit a show for consideration in one of our upcoming C21 Hot Properties Playlists, email [email protected].

 
ABC

Show: Dr Ken
Slot: Friday 20.30
Producers: Sony Pictures Television, ABC Studios, Davis Entertainment
Distributor: Sony Pictures Television
The Hangover and Community star Ken Jeong takes the title role in this half-hour comedy, about a brilliant physician who has no bedside manner.

Show: The Muppets
Slot: Tuesday 20.00
Producers: ABC Studios, The Muppets Studios
Distributor: Disney Media Distribution
Aimed at a more mature audience that previous shows, ABC’s new take on The Muppets explores the characters’ personal lives in a faux documentary style. Bill Prady and Bob Kushell are co-writers and exec producers, alongside Randall Einhorn, Bill Barretta, Debbie McClellan and Kyle Laughlin.

Show: The Real O’Neals
Slot: Mid-season
Producers: ABC Studios, DiBonaventura Pictures
Distributor: Disney Media Distribution
The lives of a typical Irish Catholic family take an unexpected turn when one of the sons comes out as gay, which ushers in a new era of honesty. Written by David Windsor and Casey Johnson, who exec produce alongside Brian Pines, Dan McDermott, Stacy Traub and Dan Savage.

Show: Uncle Buck
Slot: Mid-season
Producers: ABC Studios, Universal Television
Distributor: Disney Media Distribution
One of several movie spin-offs heading to TV next season, Uncle Buck follows a madcap guy who moves in with his brother’s family. Mike Epps plays the role that John Candy did in the movie, while Steven Cragg and Brian Bradley wrote the script.

CBS

Show: Angel From Hell
Slot: Thursday 21.30
Producer: CBS Television Studios
Distributor: CBS Studios International
Golden Globe and Emmy winner Jane Lynch stars in this single-cam comedy about the relationship between a female doctor and an older, outspoken woman who becomes her guardian angel. Tad Quill and Don Scardino exec produce.

Show: Life In Pieces
Slot: Monday 20.30
Producers: 20th Century Fox Television, Kapital Entertainment
Distributor: Twentieth Century Fox Television Distribution
Single-camera comedy is about a big, multi-generational family and is told over four separate stories in each half-hour episode. Justin Adler, Jason Winer and Aaron Kaplan are executive producers.

Fox

Show: Bordertown
Slot: Sunday nights from mid-season
Producer: 20th Century Fox Television
Distributor: Twentieth Century Fox Television Distribution
Animated sitcom from Seth MacFarlane and Mark Hentemann, about two families living on the US-Mexico border.

Show: Grandfathered
Slot: Tuesday 20.00
Producers: ABC Studios, 20th Century Fox Television
Distributor: Disney Media Distribution
Sitcom, about a confirmed bachelor who discovers he’s a grandfather. John Stamos stars and shares exec production with Daniel Chun and Dan Fogelman.

Show: The Grinder
Slot: Tuesday 20.30
Producer: 20th Century Fox Television
Distributor: Twentieth Century Fox Television Distribution
Rob Lowe stars in this legal comedy, about a TV lawyer who moves back home to join his brother’s real law firm. Lowe, Andrew Mogel, Jarrad Paul, Nicholas Stoller and Jake Kasdan are the exec producers.

Show: The Guide to Surviving Life
Slot: Mid-season
Producers: 20th Century Fox Television, The Jackal Group
Distributor: Twentieth Century Fox Television Distribution
Single-camera comedy about a group of friends living together for the first time, experiencing the ups and downs of their young lives. Ensemble cast led by Jack Cutmore-Scott. Written by Jay Lacopo, who exec produces with Gail Berman, Bill Callahan and director James Griffiths.

Show: Scream Queens
Slot: Tuesday 21.00
Producers: 20th Century Fox Television, Ryan Murphy Television, Teley-Vision
Distributor: Twentieth Century Fox Television Distribution
Comedy-horror anthology set on a university campus where a series of murders disrupts everyday life. Created by Brad Falchuk, Ian Brennan and Ryan Murphy and starring, among others, Emma Roberts, Jamie Lee Curtis and Lea Michele.

NBC

Show: Coach
Slot: Mid-season
Producer: Universal Television
Distributor: NBCUniversal International Television Distribution
Reboot of the Craig T Nelson comedy that ran for nine seasons on ABC, picking up the story picking 18 years later when a retired college football coach gets back in the game to assist his son. Original creator Barry Kemp helms.

Show: Crowded
Slot: Mid-season
Producers: Universal Television, Hazy Mills Productions
Distributor: NBCUniversal International Television Distribution
Family comedy about a couple beginning to enjoy life together again after their two grown daughters leave home, only for them to return unexpectedly and move back in. Patrick Warburton and Carrie Preston star. Suzanne Martin is writer and exec producer alongside Sean Hayes and Todd Milliner.

Show: Hot & Bothered
Slot: Mid-season
Producers: Universal Television, Unbelieveable Entertainment
Distributor: NBCUniversal International Television Distribution
Eva Longoria stars as a sizzling TV superstar and her lively family of cast and crew all competing to steal the spotlight. Chrissy Pietrosh and Jessica Goldstein are writers and exec producers, alongside Longoria, Ben Spector, Josh Bycel and Jonathan Fener.

Show: People Are Talking
Slot: Friday 20.30
Producers: Universal Television, Will Packer Productions
Distributor: NBCUniversal International Television Distribution
This comedy hails from Will Packer (Ride Along) and director Pam Fryman (How I Met Your Mother) and follows two diverse couples who live next door to each other.

Show: Superstore
Slot: Mid-season
Producers: Universal Television, The District
Distributor: NBCUniversal International Television Distribution
America Ferrara and Ben Feldman star in this workplace comedy about a unique family of employees at a super-sized megastore. Justin Spitzer is writer and exec producer, alongside David Bernad and director Ruben Fleischer.

Show: You, Me and the End of the World
Slot: Mid-season
Producers: Working Title Television, Sky TV, Bigballs Films
Distributor: NBCUniversal International Television Distribution
One-hour comedy starring Rob Lowe, Jenna Fischer, Megan Mullally and Mathew Baynton a group of seemingly unconnected characters whose lives start to intersect with the news that a comet is on a collision course with Earth. Juliette Howell, Lynn Horsford, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Cameron Roach, Lizzie Gray and Andrew Conrad are exec producers.

The CW

Show: Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
Slot: Monday 20.00
Producer: CBS Television Studios
Distributor: CBS Studios International
Rachel Bloom stars in this story of a driven and possibly crazy woman who gives up everything in a desperate attempt to find love in suburban California. Bloom also exec produces along with Aline Brosh McKenna and Marc Webb.