FOX Abandons "Pilot Season" and Will Develop Series Year Round
Entertainment Weekly is reporting that FOX will no longer just be developing and premiering new shows in the fall, but all year round. For those who may be confused by that statement, networks typically develop and produce 80 to 100 pilots at the same time near the end of the year, premiere a few, and see what sticks. While this may have been an effective strategy in the golden years of network television, FOX Entertainment's Kevin Reilly explains how this ultimately hurts the company.
“We screen them and schedule them, and they’re announced in a compressed and crazy 2-week period," he continued. “They have six weeks to get into production. It’s nothing short of a miracle that talent can produce anything of quality. Every first season show needs a course correction.”
In theory, doing this will allow shows like Almost Human and Sleepy Hollow to further develop and flesh out their seasons, and allow for new shows to mix and match acting talent and for more successful series being premiered. This is a model that cable television has had in place for awhile. When you look at the ratio of successful cable shows compared to network series, it's easy to see why they are making the change. Hopefully this will bring more great things to television!