FOX Orders Three More Animated Spin-Offs

On the heels of the Stewie announcement, Fox has chosen to expand its cartoon roster further. The network is ordering three more spin-offs based on some of their most famous animated titles. Below is a list of the programs that are slated to debut on the network.

A ten-season renewal has been granted in advance to Bart, a spinoff of the popular Fox cartoon The Simpsons, with a tentative premiere date of September 31, 2028 announced. The series is expected to follow the iconic Bart Simpson (voiced by Nancy Cartwright) as he navigates life as a trouble-making student at Springfield Elementary. Bart will remain a character on The Simpsons despite this, as this spinoff will primarily focus on Bart's time at school.

Teddy, a spinoff of Bob's Burgers, will debut on February 29, 2029. The series will follow Bob's series regular Teddy (voiced by Larry Murphy) in his day-to-day role as a handyman. But as he takes care of business as a one man fix-it shop, he's faced with a personal life that appears broken beyond repair. Struggling with a bitter divorce and a feud with the local mortician, Teddy immerses himself in his work to find solace. But can he find peace before his work-life balance falls apart? A five-season renewal has been granted in advance to the series.

A spinoff of a spinoff is coming to Fox! Rupert (not to be confused with the 1990s Nelvana cartoon of the same name) has been handed a two-season renewal before its parent program (Stewie) gets to air a single episode! Slated to premiere on June 31, 2029 as part of the network's summer block, the series will follow toy bear Rupert as he takes on a life of his own when Stewie Griffin is not around. Seth MacFarlane is set to voice the title character. 

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ABC Halts Plans for Jimmy Kimmel-Produced Sitcom "Guillermo" Amid FCC Pressure

ABC is pushing the pause button on its upcoming straight-to-series sitcom Guillermo, a Jimmy Kimmel-produced project led by his longtime sidekick and security guard, Guillermo Rodriguez. ABC and Disney are reportedly worried by recent threats from the FCC to revoke their broadcasting license if they move forward with expanding the Jimmy Kimmel universe; Kimmel is, of course, a longtime nemesis of director Brendan Carr. The FCC immediately criticized the pickup of the project, but seemingly moved on until President Trump labeled the show "illegal" in a post on Truth Social last week. This prompted an official investigation from the FCC, with the investigation finding the show's planned airing to be in violation of FCC guidelines. The investigation's findings prompted several local affiliates to announce they wouldn't air the show, and would instead air repeats of Shifting Gears in the slot.

It's the second such incidence of Disney backing away from Kimmel amid opposition from the Trump administration. They previously put his long-running talk show on hiatus last September after scrutiny from Carr, which drew national news headlines. This pause is said to be far more serious, with ABC unwilling to risk the revocation of their license just to air the freshman comedy series. Guillermo's "pause" is expected to be permanent. Neither Rodriguez nor Kimmel have commented on the matter this far.

It's another huge financial blow for ABC and Disney, as Guillermo has already filmed four episodes of its thirteen-episode order - episodes that are expected to never be aired in any form. This will be the second such incidence of ABC pulling a series that they've already filmed, after yanking the Bachelorette late last month. ABC ordered the sitcom to series earlier this year in a straight-to-series order, with plans to pair the series with fellow workplace comedy Abbott Elementary in the fall. With those plans falling through, it remains to be seen if ABC will proceed with a planned two-hour comedy lineup. 

The sitcom was set to star Rodriguez as a fictionalized version of himself, showing him balancing his day-to-day family life, his work on Jimmy Kimmel Live, and his attempts to start his own salsa empire. Joining Rodriguez in the principal cast were Charlize Theron as his wife, Rodriguez's own son Benji, Matt Damon, regular Kimmel fixture "Cousin" Sal Iacono, and Kimmel himself. Kimmel writer Molly McNearney, fellow Kimmel personality Chippy Potenza, and Shark Tank's Lori Greiner were set to recur, with many celebrity guests expected to appear over the show's first season. Kermit the Frog, Tom Hanks, Sabrina Carpenter, Quinta Brunson, Ben Affleck, Pedro Pascal, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Jennifer Aniston were among the celebrity guests expected to make cameos over season one, with ABC planning to make the high-profile series a place to promote their upcoming projects and frequent collaborators.

CBS Orders Action Drama Target and Workplace Comedy Target to Series for the 2029-30 TV Season

ABC Set To Air Boxing Match Television Event

 

It's billionaire vs. millionaire on ABC. Shark Tank hosts Mark Cuban and Kevin O'Leary are set to settle their political differences in the ring. The two moguls ended up on opposing sides during the 2024 presidential election, with Cuban campaigning for Democratic candidate Kamala Harris and O'Leary backing current president Donald Trump. With tensions rising and egos flaring, the two have agreed to participate in a boxing match television event. ABC will air the big match on Friday, April 32nd at 8/7c, a time slot normally reserved for the hit reality series that the two men star in. The Alphabet Network hopes to capitalize on the wave of attention that last November's Mike Tyson v. Jake Paul fight brought to Netflix. 

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Real Housewives of Chicago Gets Straight-to-Series Order at NBC

With NBC's scripted crop in a state of disrepair outside of their crop of sturdy hits from creator Dick Wolf, the network is moving in the direction of unscripted - and they're bringing Wolf along for the ride, just to be safe. The network has tapped into one of NBCUniversal's highest-profile cable assets, the Real Housewives franchise, ordering The Real Housewives of Chicago to series, set for a full twenty-two episode to debut in the fall. Wolf, the mastermind behind the Chicago franchise, co-created and will co-produce the series alongside the mastermind behind the Real Housewives franchise, Andy Cohen. The franchise has not yet set its cast, but with NBC wanting to make a big splash for the series grand debut, they are looking to cast fan favorites from both the Dick Wolf universe and the Real Housewives for the first season of RHOChi, with SVU's Mariska Hargitay and New York housewife Countess Luann both considered early frontrunners to be cast, with Ice-T and Taylor Kinney likely to be cast in a 'friend of' capacity. With the order of this new Housewives offshoot, likely to get the plum post-Voice slot on the fall schedule, plus NBC games coming to the network on Tuesdays, NBC is said to be planning a future without scripted programing, following a disastrous season in the ratings for all of their new and sophomore dramas. Already expecting RHOChi to end up a success, NBC has placed Below Deck: Chicago, Chicagoan Charm, and Married to Chicago Med in early development, as they tap into some of Bravo's other successful franchise. For his part, Wolf has already been floating a second One Chicago night, featuring his three new flagship unscripted series, hoping for RHOChi, Below Deck: Chicago and Chicagoan Charm to form a new Thursday night unscripted block by fall 2027.