Fox sets premiere date for "Human Target"
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - "Human Target" is one of three Fox shows to receive the coveted "American Idol" lead-in next year while "Fringe" will keep toughing it out on Thursdays.
Those programing decisions are part of Fox's midseason schedule, which lays out the network's lineup through April.
Mondays will contain the network's marquee dramas, "House" and "24," starting January 25, with "24" getting a two-hour opener the previous week.
Tuesdays have "American Idol," kicking off January 12. "Idol" will be used to introduce viewers to Mark Burnett's new family-friendly game show, "Our Little Genius," on Wednesday, January 13, before the show shifts to Tuesdays (also paired with "Idol") beginning January 19.
"Glee" will return to take over for "Genius" on Tuesdays starting April 13 -- meaning the musical comedy is taking a whopping four-month hiatus after its mid-December fall finale. The move likely accommodates showrunner Ryan Murphy's shooting schedule for his big-screen adaptation of the best-selling memoir "Eat, Pray, Love."
On Wednesdays, new action-drama "Human Target" will benefit from the "Idol" lead-in starting January 20. "Target" will bow a few nights earlier: Sunday, January 17, when it will have a plum launch, debuting between Fox's telecast of the NFC Divisional Playoff game and the two-hour "24" premiere -- a male-skewing ratings sandwich.
Despite some ratings trouble for "Fringe" that's had fans clamoring for Fox to move the show to a less competitive night, the drama will remain on the Thursday schedule, paired with "Bones." New procedural drama "Past Life" will take over for "Fringe" as of February 11, but since Fox shortened its order for the show, "Fringe" will return April 1. Fox will air the series finale of the canceled "Dollhouse" on January 22. Gordon Ramsay's "Kitchen Nightmares" takes over the time period the following week.
And finally on Sunday nights, new live-action comedy "Sons of Tucson" will get a chance in the animation block, airing at 8:30 p.m. starting March 14. Animated series "The Cleveland Show" will shift to 9:30 p.m. to make room, with "American Dad" off the board.
Also off the board is "Lie to Me," which Fox just picked up for a full season and plans to air sometime in midseason.
