ABC will build on the success of the revived Roseanne and its other family comedies, launching its new series on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. The ABC fall 2018-19 schedule was announced Tuesday.
Despite the controversial tweets of its star Roseanne Barr, the return of “Roseanne” was a huge success for ABC. The network touts the comedy as the No. 1 new show of this season on any network, and that it aired five of the Top 10 comedies for the season (“Roseanne,” “Modern Family,” “Splitting Up Together,” “The Middle” and “The Goldbergs”).
All five are family comedies. “The Kids are Alright” (ABC’s spelling, not mine) fits that family comedy mold the best among the network’s new shows. Starring Michael Cudlitz and Mary McCormack as parents of eight sons living in a working-class neighborhood outside 1970s Los Angeles.
The new comedy will follow “Roseanne” in Tuesday’s comedy block that includes returning series “black-ish” and “Splitting Up Together.” At 10/9c, the new drama “The Rookie” airs.
On Wednesdays, “The Goldbergs,” “American Housewife” and “Modern Family” serve as lead-ins to the new comedy “Single Parents” and new drama “A Million Little Things.”
Read more about and watch trailers for the new shows on the ABC fall 2018-19 schedule below.
ABC did not renew the following dramas: “Deception, “Designated Survivor,” “Kevin (Probably) Saves the World,” “Marvel’s Inhumans,” “Scandal,” “Once Upon a Time,” “Quantico” and “Ten Days in the Valley.” Comedies “Alex Inc.,” “The Mayor” and “The Middle” also were canceled.
ABC fall 2018-19 schedule
(all times are CT; new shows in ALL CAPS)
Monday
7 p.m. Dancing with the Stars
9 p.m. The Good Doctor
Tuesday
7 p.m. Roseanne
7:30 p.m. THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT
8 p.m. black-ish
8:30 p.m. Splitting Up Together
9 p.m. THE ROOKIE
Wednesday
7 p.m. The Goldbergs
7:30 p.m. American Housewife (new time)
8 p.m. Modern Family
8:30 p.m. SINGLE PARENTS
9 p.m. A MILLION LITTLE THINGS
Thursday
7 p.m. Grey’s Anatomy
8 p.m. Station 19
9 p.m. How to Get Away with Murder
Friday
7 p.m. Fresh Off the Boat (new day and time)
7:30 p.m. Speechless (new day and time)
8 p.m. Child Support (new time)
9 p.m. 20/20
Saturday
7 p.m. Saturday Night Football
Sunday
6 p.m. America’s Funniest Home Videos
7 p.m. Dancing with the Stars: Juniors
8 p.m. Shark Tank
9 p.m. The Alec Baldwin Show (new title)
New fall series
Dramas
A Million Little Things
They say friendship isn’t one big thing, it’s a million little things. That’s true for a group of friends from Boston who bonded under unexpected circumstances. Some have achieved success, others are struggling in their careers and relationships, but all of them feel stuck in life. The unexpected death of one is just the wake-up call the others need to finally start living. Along the way, they discover that friends may be the one thing to save them from themselves.
Cast: David Giuntoli as Eddie, Ron Livingston as Jon, Romany Malco as Rome, Allison Miller as Maggie, Christina Moses as Regina, Christina Ochoa as Ashley, James Roday as Gary, Stephanie Szostak as Delilah and Lizzy Greene as Sophie.
Executives: DJ Nash is writer and executive producer; Aaron Kaplan and Dana Honor are executive producers; and James Griffiths is the director on the pilot and an executive producer, from ABC Studios/Kapital Entertainment.
The Rookie
Starting over isn’t easy, especially for small-town guy John Nolan who, after a life-altering incident, is pursuing his dream of being an LAPD officer. As the force’s oldest rookie, he’s met with skepticism from some higher-ups who see him as just a walking midlife crisis. If he can’t keep up with the young cops and the criminals, he’ll be risking lives—including his own. But if he can use his life experience, determination and sense of humor to give him an edge, he may just become a success in this new chapter of his life.
Cast: Nathan Fillion as John Nolan, Alyssa Diaz as Angela Lopez, Richard T. Jones as Sergeant Wade Grey, Titus Makin as Jackson West, Mercedes Mason as Captain Zoe Andersen, Melissa O’Neil as Lucy Chen, Afton Williamson as Talia Bishop and Eric Winter as Tim Bradford.
Executive team: Alexi Hawley is writer and executive producer; Mark Gordon, Nathan Fillion, Michelle Chapman and Jon Steinberg are executive producers on the series. Liz Friedlander directed and executive produced the first episode. Entertainment One (eOne) is the lead studio on “The Rookie,” a co-production with ABC Studios.
Comedies
The Kids Are Alright
Set in the 1970s, this ensemble comedy follows a traditional Irish-Catholic family, the Clearys, as they navigate big and small changes during one of America’s most turbulent decades. In a working-class neighborhood outside Los Angeles, Mike and Peggy raise eight boisterous boys who live out their days with little supervision. The household is turned upside down when oldest son Lawrence returns home and announces he’s quitting the seminary to go off and “save the world.” Times are changing and this family will never be the same. There are 10 people, three bedrooms, one bathroom and everyone is in it for themselves.
Cast: Michael Cudlitz as Mike Cleary, Mary McCormack as Peggy Cleary, Sam Straley as Lawrence, Caleb Martin Foote as Eddie, Sawyer Barth as Frank, Christopher Paul Richards as Joey, Jack Gore as Timmy, Andy Walken as William and Santino Barnard as Pat.
Executive team: The series is inspired by the childhood of writer/executive producer Tim Doyle. Randall Einhorn directed and was an executive producer on the pilot.The series is from ABC Studios.
Single Parents
This ensemble comedy follows a group of single parents as they lean on each other to help raise their 7-year-old kids and maintain some kind of personal lives outside of parenthood. The series begins when the group meets Will, a 30-something guy who’s been so focused on raising his daughter that he’s lost sight of who he is as a man. When the other single parents see just how far down the rabbit hole of PTA, parenting and princesses Will has gone, they band together to get him out in the dating world and make him realize that being a great parent doesn’t mean sacrificing everything about your own identity.
Cast: Taran Killam as Will, Leighton Meester as Angie, Kimrie Lewis as Poppy, Jake Choi as Miggy, Marlow Barkley as Sophie, Tyler Wladis as Graham, Devin Trey Campbell as Rory, Grace Hazelett as Emma, Sadie Hazelett as Amy and Brad Garrett as Douglas.
Executive team: The series is from 20th Century Fox Television and ABC Studios. JJ Philbin and Liz Meriwether are creators and executive producers, and Katharine Pope is executive producer. The pilot was directed by Jason Winer, who is also an executive producer.
New midseason series
Dramas
The Fix
Attorney and author Marcia Clark co-writes and executive produces a new legal drama about Maya Travis, an L.A. district attorney who suffers a devastating defeat when prosecuting an A-list actor for double murder. With her high-profile career derailed, she flees for a quieter life in Washington. Eight years later when this same celebrity is under suspicion for another murder, Maya Travis is lured back to the DA’s office for another chance at justice.
Cast: Robin Tunney as Maya Travis, Adam Rayner as Matthew Collier, Merrin Dungey as CJ, Breckin Meyer as Alan Wiest, Marc Blucas as Riv, Mouzam Makkar as Loni Kampoor, Alex Saxon as Gabriel Johnson, with Scott Cohen as Ezra Wolf and Adewale Akinnouye-Agbaje as Sevvy Johnson.
Executive team: Elizabeth Craft & Sarah Fain and Marcia Clark are writers and executive producers. David Hoberman, Todd Lieberman and Laurie Zaks are executive producers (Mandeville). Larysa Kondracki directed the pilot.
Grand Hotel
Eva Longoria executive produces this bold, provocative drama set at the last family-owned hotel in multicultural Miami Beach. Charismatic Santiago Mendoza owns the hotel, while his glamorous second wife, Gigi, and their adult children enjoy the spoils of success. The hotel’s loyal staff round out a contemporary, fresh take on an upstairs/downstairs story. Wealthy and beautiful guests bask in luxury. But scandals, escalating debt and explosive secrets hide beneath the picture-perfect exterior. The show is based on the Spanish series viewers can watch on Netflix.
Cast: Demian Bichir as Santiago Mendoza, Roselyn Sanchez as Gigi Mendoza, Denyse Tontz as Alicia Mendoza, Bryan Craig as Javi Mendoza, Wendy Raquel Robinson as Mrs. P, Lincoln Younes as Danny, Shalim Ortiz as Mateo, Anne Winters as Ingrid, Chris Warren as Jason, Feliz Ramirez as Carolina and Justina Adorno as Yoli.
Executive team: Brian Tanen is the writer and executive producer; Eva Longoria and Ben Spector (UnbeliEVAble), Ramon Campos and Teresa Fernandez-Valdes (Beta) are executive producers of the series. Ken Olin directed the pilot. The series is produced by ABC Studios.
Whiskey Cavalier
“Whiskey Cavalier” is a high-octane, hour-long action dramedy that follows the adventures of tough but tender FBI super-agent Will Chase (codename: “Whiskey Cavalier”). Following an emotional breakup, Chase is assigned to work with badass CIA operative Francesca “Frankie” Trowbridge (codename: “Fiery Tribune”). Together, they lead an inter-agency team of flawed, funny and heroic spies who periodically save the world (and each other) while navigating the rocky roads of friendship, romance and office politics.
Cast: Scott Foley as Will Chase, Lauren Cohan as Francesca “Frankie” Trowbridge, Ana Ortiz as Susan Sampson, Tyler James Williams as Edgar Standish and Vir Das as Jai Datta.
Executive team: Dave Hemingson is writer and executive producer; Bill Lawrence and Jeff Ingold (Doozer Productions) are executive producers; Peter Atencio is director and executive producer (pilot), and Scott Foley is producer of the series from Warner Bros. Television.
Comedies
Schooled
This spinoff of the hit series “The Goldbergs” will be set in 1990-something and follow the hilarious teachers of William Penn Academy—led by Tim Meadows (Principal Glascott), Bryan Callen (Coach Mellor) and AJ Michalka (Lainey Lewis)—who, despite their eccentricities and crazy personal lives, are heroes to their students.
Executive team: Story by Marc Firek and Adam F. Goldberg. Teleplay by Marc Firek. The series is from Sony Pictures Television and ABC Studios. Adam F. Goldberg, Doug Robinson and Marc Firek are executive producers.
Other fall schedules