Fox is bringing back some faves from both inside the family and outside of it.
For starters, American Dad! is coming back to the broadcast network where it all started. (American Dad! began on Fox before moving to TBS for more than a decade.) But this isn’t the story about that return — here is the story about that return — Fox just jacked a pair of early-2000s NBC game shows for its fall and midseason schedules.
The Weakest Link is back on broadcast with a celebrity version. Celebrity Weakest Link will air on Monday nights this fall at 9 p.m., following Name That Tune.
Related Stories
Fox network president Michael Thorn says he and his team have “been talking” about reviving The Weakest Link “since maybe last summer.” There were “a couple opportunities” at stake, Thorn said on a conference call, the “first to get Jane Lynch back on the network.”
“She’s amazing, and we’re thrilled to have her be back on Fox,” Thorn told the media ahead of Fox’s Monday upfront. “But the other part of it is we saw an opportunity to have a celebrity game night on Monday night, and to have that as real strong counter-programming in the fall. And so when it became available, it just felt like a signature piece of IP and something that could really blend in with our game shows.”
And come midseason, Fear Factor is coming to Fox — with a twist. This time, the contestants will live in a house together. Hope their biggest fear isn’t cohabitating.
Fear Factor “just came up recently,” Thorn said. “It’s a phenomenal title. It’s visceral storytelling at its best.”
“The chance to reinvent it with a reality element, honestly, it was a no-brainer,” Thorn added. “So it’s coincidental but exciting.”
The coincidence he’s referring to is the fact that Fox is, in part, running NBC’s 2001 schedule now.
“The reinvention piece is critical here. It’s called Fear Factor, and we’re going to take the brand name,” Fox Entertainment CEO Rob Wade jumped in, “but I think the producer’s come up with a really interesting take on it, and it’s not going to feel like the show from 20 years ago.”
There is no word yet if Joe Rogan will host this Fear Factor — or really if he’ll have any involvement at all. (Fear Factor by day, Joe Rogan Podcast by night, all day!) If you haven’t heard, quite a bit has changed for Rogan since he hosted the original Fear Factor on NBC from 2001-06 (plus a revival season in 2012).
“We just ordered the series and we are just in the process of hiring showrunners and talking about hosts and everything right now,” Thorn said. “So obviously, [Rogan is] major talent tied to the show, but it’s too early for us to say how we’re going to move forward right now. But we’re thrilled to have the property, and think we’re going to be able to really complement our unscripted lineup with it.”
