When it comes to new midseason entries, oftentimes networks give tentative time slots well ahead of time, when in fact, their actual time slots are different. Take a look below at the times shows were originally supposed to air in one time slot, though as the year went on it made more sense to premiere the shows somewhere else:
ABC
The FamilyORIGINAL: Sunday at 10pm
ACTUAL: Sunday at 9pm
WHY: Turns out that it would be Quantico performing better than Blood & Oil than the other way around, letting The Family shift to 9pm instead of displacing the very new Quantico.
Secrets & Lies
ORIGINAL: Wednesday at 10pm
ACTUAL: Nowhere
WHY: We never really were given a reasoning for why Secrets & Lies got delayed so much, to the point where it took an entire season off. One thing is for sure that it probably would have rated better than American Crime did, though at least the latter has more awards potential.
Uncle Buck
ORIGINAL: Friday at 8:30pm
ACTUAL: Summer, Tuesday at 9pm and 9:30pm
WHY: Despite low reviews, Dr Ken became somewhat of a Friday hit, becoming the first post-Last Man Standing show ever to receive a renewal. Based on Variety's ad rate estimate, ABC expected Dr Ken to be 13-and-done and Uncle Buck replacing it with better ratings. Though stability and solid retention from its lead-in got Dr Ken through a full 22 episode order and a renewal, pushing Uncle Buck back to the summer, which may even have been a good thing for the latter.
Other Notables
Galavant actually did keep its expected Sunday at 8pm time slot. Another interesting thing is it implied that Fresh Off The Boat was to be replaced midseason by The Real O'Neals, when in actuality Fresh Off The Boat received a backorder and slid up to 8pm to replace The Muppets.
FOX
The X-Files
ORIGINAL: Monday at 9pm
ACTUAL: Monday at 8pm
WHY: Because The X-Files had self-starting potential and could be used as a great lead-in. They made the right decision by moving it up to 8pm and pairing it with the then-unscheduled-comeplately Lucifer.
Cooper Barrett's Guide to Surviving Life
ORIGINAL: Tuesday at 9:30pm
ACTUAL: Sunday at 8:30pm, then Sunday at 7:30pm
WHY: Originally it seemed that FOX planned on keeping Brooklyn Nine-Nine on Sunday for the entire season, with a two-hour Tuesday block that kept Grandfathered and The Grinder in the 8pm hour, followed by New Girl and Cooper Barrett in the 9pm hour. None of that happened, probably in part to give Cooper Barrett a greater chance of success, especially with its male-skewing potential.
Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader
ORIGINAL: Friday at 9pm
ACTUAL: Nowhere to be found
WHY: Probably because of those terrible summer ratings. Airing Hell's Kitchen (and Second Chance burnoffs) were for the better.
NBC
Celebrity Apprentice
ORIGINAL: Sunday at 8pm
ACTUAL: Nowhere to be found
WHY: Donald Trump decided he wanted to be the center of attention in politics instead of on a reality television show. Instead, it was Little Big Shots, followed by multi-cams The Carmichael Show and Crowded.
Heartbeat
ORIGINAL: Tuesday at 9pm
ACTUAL: Wednesday at 8pm, midseason
WHY: Star Melissa George got pregnant, causing the show to get benched very soon after the original time slot was announced. It was replaced by Chicago Med, a way stronger show in the ratings.
Chicago Med
ORIGINAL: Tuesday at 10pm, before Chicago Fire takes over
ACTUAL: Tuesday at 9pm
WHY: Thanks to Heartbeat being pushed back, Chicago Med was able to take over that post-Voice time slot and air an entire season there. NBC's best Tuesday night in years in terms of relative ratings was the result.
CBS and The CW
Interestingly, there was no mention on time slots for Legends of Tomorrow or The 100, both midseason entries. Also not mentioned was the switch of The Vampire Diaries and The Originals from Thursdays to Fridays. Over on CBS, there were no tentative midseason time slots announced until the midseason schedule arrived. Judging by how many changes were made to some of the other networks' schedules, you can't blame them.