We knew the fall season of scripted television was in jeopardy when the Writers Guild of America began their strike in May, especially knowing that SAG-AFTRA was likely to follow. The actors’ union did, in fact, begin striking in July, and even with some productions starting to go back to work for the fall — albeit with loud protests from those on the picket lines — things are looking pretty dire for the series we’re used to seeing return as cooler temperatures creep in. Below we’ve compiled a list of scripted shows like Law & Order and Grey’s Anatomy whose premieres we will not be seeing this fall.
ABC
With scripted shows at a standstill amid the strikes, ABC’s fall schedule will see an uptick in reality and competition programming, with series like Dancing with the Stars, The Golden Bachelor — which, hilariously, will air alongside Bachelor in Paradise — and Celebrity Jeopardy filling the primetime slots. With Season 2 of Celebrity Jeopardy! being finalized before the strikes started, it appears that might be the only place to catch actors like Christopher Meloni, Dulé Hill and Steven Weber this fall. Here are the shows we won’t see:
- 9-1-1 (after being canceled by Fox and picked up by ABC)
- Abbott Elementary (repeats of previously aired episodes will air)
- The Conners
- The Good Doctor
- Grey’s Anatomy
- High Potential (midseason)
- Not Dead Yet
- The Rookie
- Station 19
- Will Trent
The fates of Home Economics, The Rookie: Feds and Felicity Huffman’s The Good Doctor spinoff The Good Lawyer are still up in the air. While delays are likely inevitable, it can only be seen as a good sign that cancellations haven’t been issued by now.
CBS
CBS’ fall schedule will of course include reality mainstays like Survivor and The Amazing Race — with both seeing supersized seasons, to boot — and the network will also air Yellowstone from the beginning for the first time. CBS viewers can look forward to an NCIS mini-marathon and reruns of several of its other series too. However, we’ll have to wait for new episodes of the following shows:
- Blue Bloods (will air classic episodes)
- Bob Hearts Abishola
- CSI: Vegas
- The Equalizer
- Elsbeth (a spinoff of The Good Wife and The Good Fight)
- FBI
- FBI: International
- FBI: Most Wanted
- Fire Country
- Ghosts (CBS will air episodes of Ghosts UK)
- Matlock
- NCIS
- NCIS: Hawaii
- The Neighborhood
- Poppa’s House (midseason)
- So Help Me Todd
- S.W.A.T.
- Tough as Nails
- Tracker (midseason)
- Young Sheldon
FOX
In addition to lots of Gordon Ramsay this fall, Fox also has its Sunday animation block to fall back on, thanks to episodes being produced pretty far in advance. So while the show will go on for The Simpsons, KRAPOPOLIS, Bob's Burgers, and Family Guy, the rest of the scripted slate has been pushed to midseason (or beyond), including:
- 9-1-1: Lone Star
- Accused
- Alert: Missing Persons Unit
- Animal Control
- The Cleaning Lady
- Doc
- Grimsberg
- The Great North
- Rescue: HI-Surf
NBC
NBC’s slate leaves fans with some big questions about the Law & Order franchise, but the network will actually feature a handful of scripted shows. Quantum Leap will air its second season starting October 4, with the final season of Magnum P.I. premiering the same day. They’ve also already begun airing reruns of Chicago P.D., and the network will continue with repeats of other favorites. However, premiere dates for new episodes of the following shows remain unknown:
- The Americas (midseason)
- Chicago Fire
- Chicago P.D.
- Chicago Med
- La Brea (midseason)
- Law & Order
- Law & Order: Organized Crime (midseason)
- Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
- Lopez vs. Lopez (midseason)
- Night Court
Things certainly seem to be a big mess for the TV networks — and it’s not just the small screen, with the strikes wreaking havoc on the movie schedule as well. It’ll be interesting to see how everything shifts once agreements are able to be reached between the studios and the unions. However, in the meantime, keep an eye on the 2023 TV schedule to see what shows are premiering soon.
