Fox loves being in business with John Cena, co-chairman and CEO Gary Newman told TheWrap on Tuesday — so it’s a shame TV viewers don’t seem to hold their “American Grit” series in such esteem.
So, what should an executive do with a show that can’t pull decent Nielsen numbers, even with a bonafide stud as its star?
“We really have not sat down and talked about the future of it,” Newman said of “Grit” during an interview at the Television Critics Association press tour. “We are… committed to giving shows their 35-plus days to see how their ratings aggregate.”
“Obviously, the ratings were not great for the show this summer,” he said. “We wish that they had been higher.”
“We are huge fans of John, there’s just no question that he’s a star,” Newman continued, echoing the conundrum. “We had really hoped that in Season 2, more people would come to it.”
In addition to “Big Match” John’s large-as-life presence, Newman also said he likes the series’ “blue skies” setting, as well as the format’s competition aspects.
But the WWE Superstar seems to be the main draw for Fox.
“Clearly, John is a huge appeal to us,” Newman told us. “Did we not have a great personality in the center of it, it would have been a lot harder to justify picking it up for a second season.”
“American Grit” recently wrapped that season, in which its 0.5 average in the key 18-49 demographic placed it among the lowest-rated shows of the summer. The reality show fared better in ratings over its freshman run (a 0.9 in the spring), though even then the series existed on the cancellation bubble. Both of those figures include a week’s worth of delayed viewing where available
15 New Fall TV Shows You'll Want to Catch, From 'Inhumans' to 'Star Trek: Discovery' (Photos)
Fall TV season is about to kick off, and with dozens of new shows on top of returning favorites it can be a lot to keep track of. Here are TheWrap's picks for freshman comedies and dramas worth a watch.
"The Orville" (Fox) Sunday, Sept. 10 at 8 p.m. Set 400 years in the future, Fox's new "Star Trek" send-up stars "Family Guy's" Seth MacFarlane as a space ship commander who must co-pilot with his ex-wife following a bitter divorce.
"The Gifted" (Fox) Monday, Oct. 2 at 9 p.m. From "Burn Notice" creator Matt Nix, Fox's "The Gifted expands the Marvel TV universe with an "X-Men"-adjacent series starring Stephen Moyer and Amy Acker as parents who go on the run after discovering their children are mutants. The pilot episode was directed by "X-Men's" Bryan Singer.
"Law & Order: The Menendez Murders" (NBC) Tuesday, Sept. 26 at 10 p.m. Super-producer Dick Wolf brings his police-procedural pedigree and penchant for ripped-from-the-headlines drama to a scripted adaptation of the true crime story of the Menendez brothers and the murder of their parents in 1989.
"The Mayor" (ABC) Tuesday, Oct. 3 at 9:30 p.m. Created by "The Mindy Project" alum Jeremy Bronson, "The Mayor" follows a rapper who runs for mayor as a publicity stunt but wins on the strength of his passion for his home town alone.
"Inhumans (ABC)" Friday, Sept. 1 in IMAX and Friday, Sept. 29 at 8 p.m. on ABC Marvel's newest ABC series stars "Hell on Wheels" alum Anson Mount and "Game of Thrones" vet Iwan Rheon as the leaders of an alien race of mutants called The Inhumans. "Iron Fist's" Scott Buck serves as showrunner.
"Will & Grace" (NBC) Thursday, Sept. 28 at 9 p.m. After an election-themed short reunited the cast and creators of "Will & Grace," NBC opted to revive the classic sitcom with a more timely political edge, bringing back the original series by ignoring the events of the divisive finale. Plus, NBC has such confidence fans will come back to the show, it's already picked up another season.
"Star Trek: Discovery" (CBS) Sunday, Sept. 24 at 8:30 p.m. on CBS and CBS All Access CBS' newest entry in the "Star Trek" franchise was plagued by delays and behind-the-scenes turmoil, but is finally set to launch in the fall with "Walking Dead" star Sonequa Martin-Green and Michelle Yeoh taking the lead as the first women of color to topline a "Star Trek" series.
"Me, Myself & I" (CBS) Monday, Sept. 25 at 9:30 p.m. CBS' newest sitcom takes a unique approach to storytelling, split between three periods of a man's life, with "Saturday Night Live's" Bobby Moynihan to play the 40-year-old version of Alex, and John Larroquette to play the 65-year-old version.
"Dynasty" (The CW) Wednesday, Oct. 11 at 9 p.m. A reboot of the 1980s soap opera, The CW's "Dynasty" will shift its focus, showcasing the famed rivalry between the Carringtons and the Colbys through two women: Fallon Carrington (Elizabeth Gillies) and her soon-to-be stepmother, Cristal (Nathalie Kelley).
"Mindhunter" (Netflix) Friday, Oct. 13 "Mindhunter," starring Jonathan Groff and Holt McCallany as two FBI agents who attempt to get inside the heads of serial killers to understand them, reunites director David Fincher with Netflix after winning the streamer its first Emmy for "House of Cards."
"Alias Grace" (Netflix) Friday, Nov. 3 After the runaway success of Hulu's "The Handmaid's Tale," Netflix is readying it's own Margaret Atwood adaptation with the Anna Paquin-led "Alias Grace." Sarah Gadon stars as a Canadian woman accused of the murder of her employer and his housekeeper.
One of several Marvel TV shows set to launch this fall, Hulu's "Runaways" adapts the classic comics story of a group of kids who discover that their parents are all supervillians. The series adaptation hails from "The OC" and "Gossip Girl" bosses Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage.
"Future Man" (Hulu) Tuesday, Nov. 14 Josh Hutcherson stars in his first TV series in Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg's "Future Man," a story about a socially inept janitor and world-ranked gamer who is visited by characters from a video game claiming he's been selected to travel back in time and help them save the world.
"The Last O.G." (TBS) Tuesday, Oct. 24 at 10 p.m. Tracy Morgan returns to a leading role on television after "30 Rock" and a near-fatal car accident in the TBS comedy "The Last O.G." alongside "Girls Trip" breakout Tiffany Haddish and Cedric the Entertainer. Morgan plays a plan shocked by how much the world has changed after he's released from a 15 year prison sentence.
"The Deuce" (HBO) Sunday, Sept. 10 at 9 p.m. "The Wire" creator continues his successful relationship with HBO with "The Deuce," a period drama about the origins of the porn industry in 1970s New York City. Maggie Gyllenhaal and James Franco star, with Franco pulling double duty as a pair of twin brothers.
Find out which freshman series are worth watching in the coming months
Fall TV season is about to kick off, and with dozens of new shows on top of returning favorites it can be a lot to keep track of. Here are TheWrap's picks for freshman comedies and dramas worth a watch.