As the sayings go, you can't keep a good man down, and you can't teach an old dog new tricks. in this particular case, the long-running reality competition American Idol is both the good man and the old dog. Just two years after bidding farewell to viewers on Fox with an all-star reunion bash, American Idol is officially coming back, but at an all new home: ABC.
Yes, the current home of reality mainstays such as The Bachelor franchise, Dancing with the Stars and Shark Tank will soon feature some of the country's most talented singers, and ABC will no doubt pour a bunch of money into this reboot to try and re-drum up interest in American Idol. To that end, Ben Sherwood, President of ABC-Disney, says the show will be "bigger, bolder and better than ever" on his network. Over on Fox, the series' budget expanded yearly while the ratings waned, with primetime becoming saturated with similar programming. And it's indeed other shows like The Voice that make Idol's spot on the schedule all the more interesting. Unfortunately, ABC didn't offer up a premiere window or even a chose night(s) to air. Is it taking aim at Adam Levine and Blake Shelton?
As well, the network's announcement also didn't come with any reveals for either a host or any potential judges. That's almost not so surprising, considering ABC's Upfronts presentations are mere days away, and that's the prime spot for letting everyone know who'll show up onscreen when the reboot premieres. Assuming the deals are being put in place, of course, and one would assume that they are, especially for this announcement to have been made in the first place. It's all pretty strategic, as it not only confirms all the recent rumors that ABC had come out ahead of Fox and NBC in acquiring American Idol's return, but it also gets everyone that much more interested in all the network's Upfronts info. Which, in turn, should boost interest in the rest of its programming.
Everyone obviously wants to know if Ryan Seacrest could possibly return, now that he's taken on his new role as the co-host of Live with Kelly and Ryan. We can only hope that will get answered next week as well. In the meantime, head to our summer TV schedule to see what new and returning shows already have return dates, and check out our renewal/cancellation rundowns for both network shows and for cable and streaming series.
