ABC UNVEILS 2021-2022 PRIMETIME SLATE FEATURING DISTINCTIVE NEW ORIGINAL CONTENT AND FAN FAVORITES
ABC CONTINUES WINNING STREAK AS NO. 1 ENTERTAINMENT NETWORK FOR SECOND CONSECUTIVE YEAR
NEW DRAMA ‘QUEENS’ AND NEW COMEDY ‘THE WONDER YEARS’ BOLSTER STRONG AND STABLE FALL SCHEDULE
REALITY JUGGERNAUT ‘THE BACHELORETTE’ SETS FALL PREMIERE ALONG WITH POPULAR UNSCRIPTED SERIES
FAREWELL SEASON OF GROUNDBREAKING COMEDY ‘BLACK-ISH’ TO DEBUT MIDSEASON
HIGHLY ANTICIPATED LIMITED SERIES ‘WOMEN OF THE MOVEMENT’ TO PREMIERE AS MIDSEASON EVENT
FRESHMAN COMEDIES ‘ABBOTT ELEMENTARY’ AND ‘MAGGIE’ ALSO SET FOR MIDSEASON ALONG WITH RETURN OF ‘AMERICAN IDOL’
Craig Erwich, president, Hulu Originals & ABC Entertainment, today unveiled the ABC primetime schedule for the 2021-2022 season, featuring tentpole returning shows and bold, fresh new series. The network continues to deliver on its success as the season’s No. 1 entertainment network among Adults 18-49 for the second year in a row. This marks the first time the network has won back-to-back consecutive seasons in entertainment in 25 years. ABC also has three of the top five highest-rated entertainment series, the most for any network, with “Grey’s Anatomy,” “The Bachelor” and “The Bachelorette.”
“We are proud to continue to deliver highly entertaining, culturally relevant and powerful stories that further drive our momentum as the No. 1 entertainment network,” said Erwich. “We’ve also made it a priority to be intentionally inclusive across all of our content, and we’re excited to introduce our audience to the rich new characters, bold stories and strong ensemble casts featured in our upcoming programming slate.”
Debuting this fall is the highly anticipated comedy “The Wonder Years” from Saladin K. Patterson (“Dave,” “The Big Bang Theory”), Lee Daniels (“Empire,” “The United States vs. Billie Holiday”) and original series star Fred Savage; and from Zahir McGhee (“Scandal”), the buzzed-about hip-hop drama series “Queens,” starring Eve, Naturi Naughton, Nadine Velazquez and Brandy, which will feature original music performed by cast members.
Previously announced fan-favorites “America’s Funniest Home Videos,” “The Bachelorette,” “Big Sky,” “The Conners,” “Dancing with the Stars,” “The Goldbergs,” “The Good Doctor,” “Grey’s Anatomy,” “A Million Little Things,” “The Rookie,” “Shark Tank” and “Station 19” are also set to return this fall.
Additionally, ABC’s newest critically acclaimed comedy, “Home Economics,” returns at its new time – Wednesdays at 9:30 p.m. ET/PT; and “Celebrity Wheel of Fortune” returns on a new night – Sundays at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT, followed by “Supermarket Sweep” at its new time, 9:00 p.m. ET/PT.
Groundbreaking comedy “black-ish” will receive a deserving sendoff as it returns in midseason for its eighth and final run.
The momentous limited series “Women of the Movement” will premiere as a midseason event, shining a light on Emmett Till’s mother, Mamie Till-Mobley, whose fight for justice for her murdered son galvanized the civil rights movement.
Freshman comedies “Maggie” and “Abbott Elementary,” as well as “American Idol,” will also debut midseason.
Additional midseason renewals and pickup decisions on the network’s remaining drama pilots will be made at a later time.
Fall premiere dates will be announced soon.
ABC FALL PRIMETIME SCHEDULE (all times listed are Eastern/Pacific). New shows are in bold.
DAY TIME SERIES
MONDAY
8:00 p.m. “Dancing with the Stars”
10:00 p.m. “The Good Doctor”
TUESDAY
8:00 p.m. “The Bachelorette”
10:00 p.m. “Queens”
WEDNESDAY
8:00 p.m. “The Goldbergs”
8:30 p.m. “The Wonder Years”
9:00 p.m. “The Conners”
9:30 p.m. “Home Economics” (new time)
10:00 p.m. “A Million Little Things”
THURSDAY
8:00 p.m. “Station 19”
9:00 p.m. “Grey’s Anatomy”
10:00 p.m. “Big Sky” (new day)
FRIDAY
8:00 p.m. “Shark Tank”
9:00 p.m. “20/20” (two hours)
SATURDAY
8:00 p.m. “Saturday Night Football”
SUNDAY
7:00 p.m. “America’s Funniest Home Videos”
8:00 p.m. “Celebrity Wheel of Fortune” (new day)
9:00 p.m. “Supermarket Sweep” (new time)
10:00 p.m. “The Rookie”
Show descriptions for new ABC series are below.
NEW FALL SERIES
QUEENS (Tuesdays, 10:00 p.m. ET)
Estranged and out-of-touch, four women in their 40s reunite for a chance to recapture their fame and regain the swagger they had as the Nasty Bitches – their ’90s group that made them legends in the hip-hop world.
“Queens” stars Eve as Brianna aka Professor Sex, Naturi Naughton as Jill aka Da Thrill, Nadine Velazquez as Valeria aka Butter Pecan, Taylor Selé as Eric Jones, Pepi Sonuga as Lil Muffin and Brandy as Naomi aka Xplicit Lyrics.
Zahir McGhee, Sabrina Wind and Tim Story are executive producers. The series is produced by ABC Signature, a part of Disney Television Studios. The pilot episode is written by Zahir McGhee and directed by Tim Story.
Follow “Queens” (#QueensABC) on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
THE WONDER YEARS (Wednesdays, 8:30 p.m. ET)
Inspired by the beloved award-winning series of the same name, “The Wonder Years” is a coming-of-age story set in the late 1960s that takes a nostalgic look at a Black middle-class family in Montgomery, Alabama, through the point of view of imaginative 12-year-old Dean. With the wisdom of his adult years, Dean’s hopeful and humorous recollections show how his family found their “wonder years” in a turbulent time.
“The Wonder Years” stars Don Cheadle, narrating the series as adult Dean Williams, Elisha “EJ” Williams as Dean Williams, Dulé Hill as Bill Williams, Saycon Sengbloh as Lillian Williams, Laura Kariuki as Kim Williams, Julian Lerner as Brad Hitman, Amari O’Neil as Cory Long and Milan Ray as Keisa Clemmons.
Saladin Patterson serves as writer and executive producer. Lee Daniels and Marc Velez of Lee Daniels Entertainment also executive produce along with original series star Fred Savage. The series is produced by 20th Television, a part of Disney Television Studios. The pilot episode is written by Saladin Patterson and directed by Fred Savage.
Follow “The Wonder Years” (#TheWonderYears) on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
NEW MIDSEASON SERIES
ABBOTT ELEMENTARY
In this workplace comedy, a group of dedicated, passionate teachers – and a slightly tone-deaf principal – are brought together in a Philadelphia public school where, despite the odds stacked against them, they are determined to help their students succeed in life. Though these incredible educators may be outnumbered and underfunded, they love what they do – even if they don’t love the school district’s less-than-stellar attitude toward educating children.
“Abbott Elementary” stars Quinta Brunson as Janine Teagues, Tyler James Williams as Gregory Eddie, Janelle James as Ava Coleman, Chris Perfetti as Jacob Hill, Lisa Ann Walter as Melissa Schemmenti and Sheryl Lee Ralph as Barbara Howard.
Quinta Brunson serves as writer and executive producer alongside Justin Halpern and Patrick Schumacker of Delicious Non-Sequitur Productions. The series is produced by Warner Bros. Television and 20th Television, a part of Disney Television Studios. The pilot episode is written by Quinta Brunson and directed by Randall Einhorn.
Follow “Abbott Elementary” (#AbbottElementary) on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
MAGGIE
Based on the short film by Tim Curcio, “Maggie” follows a young woman trying to cope with life as a psychic. Maggie regularly sees the future of her friends, parents, clients and random strangers on the street, but when she suddenly sees a glimpse of her own future, Maggie is forced to start living in her own present.
The series stars Rebecca Rittenhouse as Maggie, David Del Rio as Ben, Nichole Sakura as Louise, Angelique Cabral as Amy, Leonardo Nam as Dave, Ray Ford as Angel, Chloe Bridges as Jessie, Kerri Kenney as Maria and Chris Elliott as Jack.
“Maggie” is written and executive produced by Justin Adler and Maggie Mull. Evan Hayes and Jeff Morton also serve as executive producers. The series is produced by 20th Television, a part of Disney Television Studios. The pilot episode is written by Justin Adler and Maggie Mull, and directed by Natalia Anderson.
Follow “Maggie” (#MaggieABC) on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
WOMEN OF THE MOVEMENT
“Women of the Movement” tells the story of Mamie Till-Mobley, who in 1955 risks her life to find justice after her son Emmett is brutally murdered in the Jim Crow South. Unwilling to let Emmett’s murder disappear from the headlines, Mamie chooses to bear her pain on the world stage, emerging as an activist for justice and igniting the Civil Rights movement as we know it today.
The limited series stars Adrienne Warren as Mamie Till-Mobley, Tonya Pinkins as Alma, Cedric Joe as Emmett Till, Ray Fisher as Gene Mobley, Glynn Turman as Mose Wright, Chris Coy as J.W. Milam, Carter Jenkins as Roy Bryant and Julia McDermott as Carolyn Bryant.
“Women of the Movement” is produced by Kapital Entertainment. Marissa Jo Cerar serves as executive producer and showrunner. Executive producers are Aaron Kaplan, Dana Honor and Michael Lohmann (Kapital Entertainment), Jay-Z, Jay Brown and Tyran “Ty Ty” Smith (Roc Nation), Will Smith and James Lassiter (Overbrook), Rosanna Grace (Serendipity Group Inc.), Alex Foster and John Powers Middleton (Middleton Media Group), David Clark (Mazo Partners) and Gina Prince-Bythewood. The first episode is written by Marissa Jo Cerar and directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood.
Follow “Women of the Movement” (#WomenOfTheMovement) on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
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