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[07/02/03 - 12:00 AM] Cable Originals Battling for the Spotlight By Brian Ford Sullivan (TFC) |
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CHICAGO (thefutoncritic.com) -- With the June ratings period (May 26-June 29) officially a wrap, some basic cable networks are finding their original offerings are fighting an uphill battle to attract viewers.
Here's a breakdown of the latest rumblings:
-- FX is probably having the toughest time out of all of the basic cable networks. Its two latest originals: "Lucky" and "The Orlando Jones Show" have not been the ratings grabbers the network had hoped. Particularly disappointing has been "Lucky" which many expected to rebound this past month with the broadcast networks having wrapped their regular season. That hasn't been the case as the comedy saw its adults 18-49 average drop to a 0.55 rating during the period, lowering its season-to-date average to a 0.77 rating. The same bad news applies to "Jones," as the late-night talk show fell more than 60% from its opening week numbers by the end of June in the key demographic (0.24 vs. 0.60 rating). The series only saving grace has been its performance among African-American viewers where it scores a 0.66 rating among the 18-49 demographic.
-- USA on the other hand has had better, albeit mixed, results thanks to its original series "Monk." The second season bow of the drama was the most-watched episode of the series to date, securing a 4.1 household rating. Nevertheless, week two of its new season saw its viewership fall by 1.4 million total viewers (4.0 million vs. 5.4 million). Further complicating matters is the lack of another fresh installment of the series until July 11 due to the national holiday this Friday. Despite such dark clouds, "Monk" remains a key component to USA's original series strategy. A new drama, "Peacemakers," kicks off on July 30 and "The Dead Zone" returns for seven new episodes this Sunday.
-- MTV's June offerings also garnered a mixed bag of results. New Sunday series "Doggy Fizzle Televizzle" and "Who's Got Game" scored respectable numbers, topping the network's previous time slot average by 30%. Returning series "The Real World" and "The Osbournes" however weren't so lucky as both were off from year-to-year comparisions. Nevertheless, MTV's new late-night series "The New Tom Green Show" has been a surprise hit for the network, posting a strong 1.1 rating among MTV's target demographic of persons 12-34.
-- Game Show Network has seen its aggressive Sunday night lineup fail to meet expectations. After two weeks, neither "Chuck Woolery: Naturally Stoned" nor its lead-out, "Funny Money," topped the network's projected 0.8 household rating for the series.
-- TNT, which doesn't carry original series, has pulled lukewarm responses for its latest batch of original telefilms. This past weekend, the network's mini-series "Caesar" averaged 3.36 million total viewers, 1,553,000 of which were among the coveted adults 18-49 demographic. That's up 23% from TNT's primetime average as of late with Sunday's installment bringing in 3.6 million viewers (1.6 million in adults 18-49) and 3.1 million viewers (1.4 million in adults 18-49) for its conclusion on Monday.
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[07/18/25 - 09:09 AM] "Bobby's Triple Threat" Is Back With Brand-New Addition to Bobby Flay's Hand-Picked Trio of Culinary Titans The 10-episode season premieres Tuesday, September 2 at 8pm ET/PT on Food Network and streaming the next day on HBO Max.
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[07/18/25 - 08:06 AM] Jaw-Dropping Custom Builds and Outrageous Family Antics Collide in "Truck Dynasty" Premiering Tuesday, August 12 at 9PM ET/PT on Discovery Channel Florida's Apocalypse Manufacturing owner Joe Ghattas is a self-made boss in the custom truck industry, known for his bold designs and loyal following that includes hardcore enthusiasts, world-famous rappers, sports superstars, and elite supermodels.
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[07/18/25 - 08:01 AM] Hallmark Channel Adds Hit Series "Gilmore Girls" to Its Lineup Beginning August 25 Just in time for the fall, the Gilmore family and the beloved residents of Stars Hollow will add twice the warmth and joy to Hallmark Channel's widely adored slate of heartfelt programming.
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[07/18/25 - 07:36 AM] Peacock Exclusively Streams Wes Anderson's "The Phoenician Scheme" Beginning July 25 From Oscar-nominated writer and director Wes Anderson, the film stars Benicio del Toro, Mia Threapleton and Michael Cera.
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[07/18/25 - 07:01 AM] Video: Canelo Álvarez vs. Terence Crawford - Official Teaser Trailer - Netflix Two of boxing's most dominant forces, Saul "Canelo" Álvarez and Terence Crawford will face off in a once in a lifetime fight for the unified Super Middleweight championship on Saturday, September 13 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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[07/17/25 - 10:01 PM] Video: "Final Draft" - Official Trailer - Netflix Twenty-five athletes, most retired, compete to win 30M yen to launch their second career. Can they overcome tough physical and psychological challenges?
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[07/17/25 - 07:04 PM] Video: Preview - Summer Nights 2025 - Coming in August Tune in for all-new movie premieres this August on Hallmark Channel Saturday nights at 8/7c!
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[07/17/25 - 04:15 PM] "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" to End After 2025-26 Broadcast Season Colbert announced the news during tonight's taping at the Ed Sullivan Theater.
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[07/17/25 - 02:17 PM] Thrilling True Crime Docu-Series, "True Crime Story: Smugshot," Returns to SundanceTV Thursday, August 14 Created and executive produced by award-winning documentary filmmakers Amy Bandlien Storkel and Bryan Storkel, the six-episode series spotlights entitled individuals involved in elaborate criminal behavior.
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[07/17/25 - 01:31 PM] Netflix: What We Watched the First Half of 2025 This report, which captures ~99% of all viewing in the first half of 2025, shows that people watched a lot of Netflix - over 95B hours - spanning a wide range of genres and languages.
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[07/17/25 - 01:16 PM] Freida Pinto to Star in Netflix's "Unaccustomed Earth" Inspired by the internationally beloved Jhumpa Lahiri short story collection of the same name, "Unaccustomed Earth" is an epic, soapy, and culturally vibrant drama about a tight-knit Indian American community navigating love, desire, and belonging.
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[07/17/25 - 01:06 PM] Samuel L. Jackson to Headline His First TV Series As Paramount+ Greenlights "NOLA King," The First Spinoff of the Hit Series "Tulsa King" Jackson's character, Russell Lee Washington Jr., will be introduced in the upcoming, highly anticipated third season of "Tulsa King," slated to premiere in September.
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[07/17/25 - 12:53 PM] New Series "The Mother Flip" Premieres Saturday, August 16 at 12pm ET/PT on A&E's HomeMadeNation Best friends and savvy flippers Kristy Etheredge and Rebecca Franchione, along with contractor Roy Salinas, transform the worst homes in Texas' Hill Country into big profits.
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[07/17/25 - 12:11 PM] AMC Networks' August Highlights Include "Nautilus," "Irish Blood," "Kidnapped," "The Furry Detectives" and More! The month also features new seasons of Sundance TV's "True Crime Story: Smugshot," and We TV's fan-favorite series "Life After Lockup."
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[07/17/25 - 11:35 AM] ESPN "Sunday Night Baseball Presented by Capital One" Schedule Update: Division Leaders Collide as Detroit Tigers Visit Philadelphia Phillies on August 3 This marks the third "Sunday Night Baseball" appearance of the 2025 regular season for the Tigers and the fourth appearance for the Phillies.
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