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[09/29/09 - 12:11 AM] The 10 Things You Need to Know About the New Season: #2 - Friday Night Is "The Death Slot" By Brian Ford Sullivan (TFC) |
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Please note: As a courtesy, please do not reproduce these comments to newsgroups, forums or other online places. Links only please.
Welcome once again to "The 10 Things You Need to Know About the New Season," our annual feature about, well... the 10 things you need to know about the new season. The goal of this venture is to address not only common questions people have about television but to also demystify (or potentially reaffirm) stigmas out there about certain networks, time periods, genres and so forth. So with that in mind let us put on our journalistic caps and give you the cold hard truth about what's potentially ahead for some of your favorite new and returning shows...
2. Yup, it's true - Friday night is "the death slot."
No, it's not an urban legend - shows that air on Friday nights are less likely to be renewed than on any other night. Of the 100 shows that have launched on Friday night since the fall of 1999, only 15 - or just 15% - have made it to second seasons. Conversely, of the 69 shows that have bowed on Sunday nights during the same period - a whopping 28 (or 41%) made it to second seasons. Take a look at the numbers:
| day | abc | cbs | fox | nbc | upn | wb | cw | total |
| mondays | 6/22 (27%) | 11/19 (58%) | 8/28 (29%) | 14/32 (44%) | 6/8 (75%) | 1/4 (25%) | 0/2 (0%) | 46/115 (40%) |
| tuesdays | 10/36 (28%) | 6/16 (38%) | 9/19 (47%) | 10/38 (26%) | 3/22 (14%) | 5/8 (63%) | 3/4 (75%) | 46/143 (32%) |
| wednesdays | 16/49 (33%) | 7/19 (37%) | 10/34 (29%) | 4/23 (17%) | 2/11 (18%) | 3/11 (27%) | 1/6 (17%) | 43/153 (28%) |
| thursdays | 6/23 (26%) | 3/10 (30%) | 4/12 (33%) | 8/23 (35%) | 1/2 (50%) | 5/14 (36%) | | 27/84 (32%) |
| fridays | 2/21 (10%) | 6/20 (30%) | 1/23 (4%) | 1/15 (7%) | 0/5 (0%) | 5/16 (31%) | | 15/100 (15%) |
| saturdays | 1/2 (50%) | 3/8 (38%) | | 0/4 (0%) | | | | 4/14 (29%) |
| sundays | 8/13 (62%) | 1/6 (17%) | 5/15 (33%) | 8/14 (57%) | | 5/13 (38%) | 1/8 (13%) | 28/69 (41%) |
| various* | 1/7 (14%) | 4/6 (67%) | 3/10 (30%) | 1/5 (20%) | | 0/1 (0%) | | 9/29 (31%) |
| total | 50/173 (29%) | 41/104 (39%) | 40/141 (28%) | 46/154 (30%) | 12/48 (25%) | 24/67 (36%) | 5/20 (25%) | 218/707 (31%) |
With that in mind, the order from best to worst night to launch a show is Sunday (41%), Monday (40%), Thursday (32%), Tuesday (32%), Saturday (29%), Wednesday (28%) and Friday (15%).
Plus, as usual, said info reveals several interesting trends such as the fact "Dollhouse" is FOX's first Friday newcomer to be renewed for a second season in 10 years while CBS has the standard 30% success rate on the night. Conversely, Sundays have been a trouble spot for CBS (17%) while FOX averages nearly double that (33%) on the night. The night and network with the best track record: Sundays on ABC (62%) and Tuesdays on The WB (63%) and The CW (75%).
TOMORROW: Which time slot is the toughest to launch a new show?
* denotes the series in question either aired as a multi-night stunt or regulared aired in more than one time period
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[10/15/26 - 08:02 AM] Al Pacino to Be Honored with the 2026 SAG-AFTRA Life Achievement Award Pacino will be presented with the union's top tribute at The 33rd Annual Actor Awards Presented by SAG-AFTRA, which will stream live on Netflix Sunday, February 28, 2027, at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT from the Shrine Auditorium & Expo Hall.
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[10/15/26 - 08:01 AM] Video: Paramount+ Reveals December 18 Premiere Date & Teaser for "Frisco King," Starring Samuel L. Jackson Written by Taylor Sheridan, "Frisco King" follows seasoned New Orleans gangster Lee Washington as he lands in Frisco, Texas, and discovers a hustler's playground hidden beneath the polished surface of American suburbia.
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[10/15/26 - 08:01 AM] Video: "The Fall of El Mayo" - Official Trailer - Netflix Co-founder of the Sinaloa Cartel, longtime partner of "El Chapo", and a ghost to authorities for over three decades. The documentary that tells the story of his downfall.
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[10/15/26 - 08:00 AM] CBS Wins Its Premiere Week with Eight of the Top 10 Broadcast Shows and Delivers +9% Year-Over-Year Growth Weekly viewership averaged 4.43 million viewers, growing +9% from its 2025 premiere week (4.08m viewers).
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[10/15/26 - 07:01 AM] TNT Sports & DAZN Present World Championship Boxing Doubleheader on "The Fight", Saturday, Oct. 17 Headlining the evening, WBC Super Welterweight Champion Sebastián "The Towering Inferno" Fundora (24-1-1, 16 KOs) will put his title on the line against unbeaten challenger Ermal Hadribeaj (23-0-1, 8 KOs) in a scheduled 12-round showdown.
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[10/15/26 - 07:01 AM] Video: "In a Holidaze" - Official Trailer - Netflix Maddie Ziegler stars in this festive romantic comedy about second chances, tangled feelings, and a chosen family you'll want to spend the holidays with.
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[10/15/26 - 07:01 AM] Video: Prime Video Unveils the Official Trailer for "The Chosen" Season Six Premiering Exclusively on November 15, 2026 The season will culminate with a stand-alone film coming to theaters on March 12, 2027.
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[10/15/26 - 07:00 AM] Acorn TV's Charming Crime Drama, "The Madame Blanc Mysteries," Returns with All-New Episodes Monday, November 9 A dazzling line-up of familiar faces are heading to sun-soaked Sainte Victoire, ready to bring even more mystery and mischief to Season 5.
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[10/15/26 - 06:59 AM] ESPN Unveils Industry-Leading NBA Commentator Roster for Its Milestone 25th Consecutive NBA Season Mike Breen, Tim Legler, Richard Jefferson and Lisa Salters return for their second season together as ESPN and ABC's lead NBA broadcast team.
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[10/15/26 - 06:30 AM] Drew Barrymore Set to Host "Pillsbury Bake-Off Classic," A New Primetime Special Airing Thanksgiving Week, Monday, Nov. 23 on CBS and Paramount+ From cookies for a cookie exchange to Thanksgiving pies, each challenge encourages home bakers to create unforgettable recipes by putting innovative twists on beloved Pillsbury products while demonstrating their mastery of from-scratch baking.
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[10/15/26 - 06:01 AM] Video: "Steps" - Official Trailer - Netflix At midnight, we ride.
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[10/15/26 - 03:01 AM] Oriol Paulo Returns to Netflix with "Proxies", Premiering on December 11 The film tells the story of how, on Christmas Eve morning, a man walks into a police station and confesses to killing two or three people.
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[10/15/26 - 02:01 AM] Video: "Beat Luke Littler" - Official Trailer - Netflix Twenty amateurs step onto the oche against the world champion, Luke Littler.
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[10/14/26 - 10:31 PM] Video: "Gajab Raat" - Official Trailer - Netflix A cop's reluctant compassion for an injured woman exposes a conspiracy at the highest levels - trapping him in a deadly game across a single night.
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[10/14/26 - 04:10 PM] Nebraska Volleyball Serves Up a Big Saturday on FOX Nebraska's 3-0 win averaged 945,000 viewers on FOX.
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