BROADCAST NEWS - US

WB RELEASES NEW SEASON DETAILS

15.05.2001 - As predicted here on Planet Buffy, the WB has shifted Angel to 9pm on Mondays as part of today's launch of its 2001-02 season.

Here's what The WB's website has to say about the series' third season:

Angel
Returning Series
One Hour Drama
Monday 9/8c

For over 400 years [sic], he has roamed the Earth destroying men's souls and women's hearts.  He has killed, conquered, and blanketed unsuspecting lives with eternal darkness.  He is the vampire Angel.

But with the second millennium, a gypsy curse restored something hidden within his empty soul: remorse.  And fate has allowed him a chance to redeem himself in the shadowy streets of Los Angeles.  To atone for centuries of terror, Angel must now undo his dark legacy by reaching out to those who need his help most.  With Cordelia, Wesley, and Gunn by his side, only Angel can truly understand the malevolent power of darkness they oppose.

From executive producers Joss Whedon and David Greenwalt and Twentieth Television.  Back to the top

WB MOVES ANGEL TO MONDAYS

14.05.2001 - Despite not hanging onto Buffy, The WB has renewed Angel for the 2001-02 season.

As well as Angel, the network has renewed Dawson's Creek through to end of the 2002-03 season and Charmed through to 2003-04.  Also returning are 7th Heaven and Sabrina the Teenage Witch, while Roswell, Popular, Jack and Jill, Grosse Pointe and The PJs will not be back.

"We're picking up our three highest rated show and our most important sitcom, and we were able to do it in a way that wasn't public and wasn't acrimonious," the WB's co-entertainment president Jordan Levin said.

Levin and co-president Susanne Daniels said the network had determined an economic model that they said made sense in picking up the series.

"It's our understanding that in every case, the studio will be making a significant profit from the show overall," Daniels said.  "In terms of their strength on the network, we addressed every show accordingly.

The execs said the WB had been in talks to renew the quartet of series even before 20th Century Fox moved Buffy to UPN late last month.

In a surprise switch, Angel will shift to Mondays at 9pm following 7th Heaven; Variety says that UPN is now seriously considering picking up Roswell, though a deal is not yet in place.

The execs said they ultimately opted to hold on to Angel in the hopes that it will recruit it own audience in the tough post-7th Heaven timeslot.  WB execs were also reluctant to give up Angel, which would have then been paired with Buffy on UPN, giving the rival web a strong night.

"[But] we suspected that [UPN] woudl put Roswell behind Buffy, so either way we're handing them a night," Daniels said.  "It's also important for us to keep and grow our male audience, and Angel ranks high with men."

Glory Days, which stars Julie Benz has been given an eight episode order and will share the 9pm Wednesday slot with Felicity, which has been given a full 22 episode order this season.  Back to the top

HOLLYWOOD REPORTER: WB TO KEEP ANGEL, UPN AFTER ROSWELL?

11.05.2001 - Will The X Files be back on the case in the fall?  How many times a week will Who Wants to Be a Millionaire run?  Will Three Sisters see a sophomore season?

Those a only a few of the questions being mulled in TV circles this week as network executives hunker down in pilot screening rooms in preparation for next week's fall schedule unveilings in New York.

Now that the threat of a writers strike has passed, network brass are moving full speed ahead on picking pilots and setting their fall schedules.  The buzz on fall scheduling moves is starting to build, but, as ever network executives caution that it's too early to make any definitive calls.

The Hollywood Reporter then analyses each network's likely line-up in turn, including The WB and UPN:

After losing Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the word is that the WB network will probably keep the show's spin-off, Angel.

Riding high on the recent Buffy acquisition, UPN is eyeing another potential WB drama import, Roswell, in case the frog network passes on the 20th Century Fox TV alien series.  Back to the top

BUFFY SAVES UPN?

10.05.2001 - According to the Hollywood Reporter, Buffy may have given a reprieve to the UPN network, with the deal hinging on News Corp.'s decision to keep the network going on the Chris-Craft TV affiliate groups.  The trade reports that president and chief operating officer Mel Karmazin said the deal to stay with UPN was tied to the acquisition of Buffy.

Meanwhile, sources inside of News Corp. are said to be denying that anything of the sort occurred.  Fox sources are also dismissing such talk, claiming that the Buffy deal would have happened even without the Chris-Craft stations being set for UPN programming.

In addition, rumours are still flying that News Corp. may be in the running to acquire UPN.  Back to the top

UPN'S NEW TUESDAY?

08.05.2001 - According to yesterday's Wanda column, UPN are likely to Buffy at 8pm on Tuesdays - its current slot on The WB - "in front of the new Star Trek series."  However, the latter seems rather unlikely given Angel is also likely to end up on UPN next season.  Back to the top

WB GIVES BUFFY THE BRUSH-OFF

03.05.2001 - Now that Buffy is headed to UPN, The WB isn't wasting any time distancing itself from the series.  Among the WB's more interesting moves in recent days:

- The WB had previously planned to run a tribute ad in Buffy 100th episode section scheduled to run in the Hollywood Reporter next week.  In the wake of the show's defection, and Joss Whedon's comments about the WB's top management, the ad has now been pulled.  UPN has steeped in with its own congratulatory ad.

- Stock photos of the Buffy cast have been pulled from the show's official, WB-sponsored website.  WB insiders didn't want to give UPN easy access to pictures with which it could promote the show's upcoming move.  "We're only exercising our contractual right to exclusively promote the show," a WB spokesman said.

- A promo spot following Tuesday's Buffy episode warned viewers that there were only three episodes left before "The WB series finale" of Buffy.  That's technically true, but there's no doubt WB execs wouldn't mind if viewers thought the show was ending altogether.  Actually, some of us wouldn't mind if the show was ending altogether.

None of the WB's moves are particularly harsh or out of line with how other networks have behaved in the past when shows have switched webs.  For example, when the WB acquired Sabrina, The Teenage Witch from ABC last May, the WB couldn't mention the Sabrina title on-air until mid-September.  And when the WB snagged The PJs from Fox, the latter network used most of the summer to double-run the animated series, thus lessening the value of those repeats to the WB.  Back to the top

MORE JOSS COMMENTS ON THE UPN MOVE

27.04.2001 - Some further comments, taken from a recent Joss interview.

How does the cast feel about moving to UPN?

The cast is fine.  I haven't been able to speak to Sarah (Michelle Gellar) because she's off with Aborigines somewhere, (Gellar is in Australia shooting Scooby-Doo), but I know she'll be fine. ... The other cast members have also been treated extremely well (by UPN) and because the show has never been positioned as an ensemble show, they're not used to that.  (laughs)  At the end of the day, we come here to these crazy warehouses and shoot the show with the same people no matter who's showing it.

Are you at all concerned about losing fans?

I feel about fans a little bit like the way I feel about girls.  If they don't like me, I'm not interested in them.  (laughs)  My show, for me, is about the small kernel of really hard-core fans who have incorporated this show into their lives as much as I have.  I still approach this as a fan.  I go there on Tuesday nights to watch and say, "What's gonna happen?"  They're like, "Joss, you made up what happens."  And I'm like, "Yeah, but it's exciting."

So, do you actually watch UPN?

No, I don't watch UPN, but I don't watch the WB either, apart from my own shows.  That is not entirely a slam against the WB, because I don't watch TV.  One thing you'll find out is that people who make TV never have time to watch it.  I'm never home.  With the exception of The West Wing, I never see anything.

Does the move to UPN mean bigger explosions and lower-cut shirts?

My entire meeting with the executives at UPN was about the ways in which the show will not change at all.  They've got a sort of testosterone-y rep, and the first thing I described to them was the musical episode I'm doing next season.  I was like, "Oh, your blood's running cold now."  And (they) were like, "Bring it on."

We hear James Marsters (Spike) sings in a club in Santa Monica.

James Marsters will be croonin' for us.  He's got a sweet voice.  We got a lot of heavy hitters on our show.  In fact, when they come to the house sometimes, and we sit around and sing and stuff, I sort of just chart in my brain, "OK, I got some voices here."  I finally decided we'll do it.  I'm going to write the entire score as well as the script.

Do you want to take Angel with you to UPN?

It would be simpler for me if it came with Buffy.  Having said that, because I don't really think it's gonna happen and because I have a good working relationship with the people at the WB, I'm fine either way.  It affects whether or not there's crossovers - that's something we haven't gotten into.  We're sort of waiting for the dust to settle and to see where it lands.

Since you're creating an animated Buffy series for Fox, you could theoretically have your hands in three networks.  That's got to be cool.

It's nice.  I don't know that I'm the first guy to have my hand in three networks, (but) I may be the first guy to have my hand in three networks with the same bunch of characters, the same franchise.  And in fact, it may up to four at some point, but that's all I can say about that.  I gotta leave you hanging. ... It's a fourth network, and it's not the one you think.  Yes, my spin-off on BET, no.  (laughs)  It's totally Buffy related, and I'm close.  It's absolutely nothing like anything that's been done before.  Back to the top

WHEDON, UPN AWAIT ANGEL'S FATE

27.04.2001 - The dust has settled, the howls are subsiding, and the TV world is getting used to the idea that Buffy the Vampire Slayer will be fighting evil and saving the world (again) next season on UPN, not on The WB, its home since its premiere in March 1997.

"I've got a network excited about my show," says Buffy creator Joss Whedon.  "I have already figured out almost all of next season.  That's really cool."

However, when the fledging weblet, best known as the home of WWF Smackdown, bid for Buffy, some scoffed.

"It was considered a smart play for us," says Tom Nunan, UPN's entertainment chief.  "It's not like we haven't had successful shows.  We're more of a punchline in the press and among the media than we are to our viewers."

"Yet, we were surprised when it ultimately ended up in our lap."

In its original response to losing Buffy, The WB concluded by saying, "We wish Sarah (series star Sarah Michelle Gellar), Joss and David Greenwalt well."  While he is a consulting producer on Buffy, Greenwalt's primary responsibility is its spin-off and Tuesday-night sked-mate Angel, where he is co-creator and executive producer with Whedon, and show-runner.

Does this mean Angel is out-the-door at The WB as well?

"That's pretty provocative," says Nunan of the wording of The WB's response.  As to the status of the sophomore series, he says, "It's really in The WB's court.  We have a pre-negotiated deal for Angel, should it become available.  We'd love to have it.

"But The WB still has complete control over the destiny of that show."

"I don't know what bubble Angel's on," says Whedon.  "The common wisdom among the lower brass (at The WB) seemed to be that Angel was going with Buffy.  Then they basically scrambled and said, 'Well, we haven't decided yet.  We don't have a schedule.'  Which is their prerogative.  So I have no idea.

"It's a little confusing.  It will affect certain things, whether or not it's on The WB.  I don't know how easy it will be to do crossovers, on two different networks that are probably not best friends."

"It's a tough situation for those guys," says Nunan, "because Buffy really does drive Angel's audience.  Angel is a show that, while it's promising, it doesn't have the same footing creatively yet the Buffy does."

"Whether it ends up on The WB or on UPN, there's more work to be done on that show, and Joss, I think, is the first one to admit it."

Says Whedon, "I just spent all of lunch figuring out the next Angel season with Marti [Noxon] and David [Greenwalt] and Tim Minear, and it didn't really matter what network we were on.  We were figuring out what the hell the show should be about.

"It's so complicated.  All I know is, Buffy has a home, Angel has a home - I don't know which one yet - so I have a comfort zone.  Obviously, things are strained with The WB right now, but these are good, creative people who helped develop Buffy in the first place, and I would work with them again in a hot minute.  But there's the higher level where I don't have a comfort zone."

Whedon also has no qualms about going to the lowest-rated network.  "A fledgling network struggling to find an identity - I've done this before.  It worked fine.  The fact is, UPN is going to look after me in a way that the bigger networks never would.  They'll pay attention to the show, and more importantly, they won't interfere in the making of it.  They want the show as it is."

Will UPN ask to have WWF wrestlers on Buffy?  "They're really not going to, bless 'em," says Whedon.  "The show's not going to change at all."

Whedon plans to appear at UPN's upfront presentation to its advertisers this May in New York.  "Yes, yes!" he says.  "I will be there.  I'll say some stuff."  Back to the top

ANOTHER WB STATEMENT ON THE UPN MOVE

26.04.2001 - Letter from the WB network's entertainment co-presidents about Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

April 24, 2001

Dear Buffy Fans,

As you are probably aware, Buffy the Vampire Slayer will be leaving The WB at the end of this summer after five seasons with our network.

Of course we're disappointed that Buffy won't be part of our long-term future, but we couldn't be prouder of what we've accomplished through years of nurturing and believing in the show, and of the achievements to date of the talented cast and crew.  It took a lot of time, effort and energy to get this show on the air at a time when there was nothing else out there like it, and to make it a success even when others doubted.

Knowing how much you care about the show, we negotiated strongly to keep it on The WB, but ultimately the price 20th Television wanted was too high for us to pay while continuing to bring you other quality programming six nights a week.

You will definitely want to see what happens in Sunnydale as the current season draws to a close.  With the same passion we brought to Buffy, we're also working on some amazing new programs for next season we think you'll be very excited about, and are looking forward to announcing those on TheWB.com in a few weeks.

We'll keep Buffy.com going for a long as the show is still on The WB, and TheWB.com will continue to be your best source for what's happening on the network.

Want to tell us what you think?  Write to us.

And thanks for your loyal viewership.  Everyone here works hard to earn it.

Best regards,

Susanne Daniels
Co-President, Entertainment
susanne@talk.thewb.com

Jordan Levin
Co-President, Entertainment
jordan@talk.thewb.com

THE WB TELEVISION NETWORK  Back to the top

UPN SINKS ITS TEETH INTO NABBING BUFFY

26.04.2001 - It won't exactly cause a cosmic shift in the broadcasting universe.

But the recent news that Buffy the Vampire Slayer is bolting WB to join UPN next season shook up the world of the bantamweight networks.

What's up with the Buffy bingo?

WB didn't want to lose its signature hit, which helped cement the network's brand-name identity as a popular viewing stop for female teens.  And struggling UPN has been desperate for a hit show beyond WWF Smackdown!

It all came down to - what else? - the money.

After WB balked, UPN quickly agreed to pay a whopping $2.3 million per episode to acquire Buffy, which stars Sarah Michelle Gellar and will probably stay at 8pm Tuesdays in its new network home.  That exorbitant price is more than twice what WB had been paying 20th Century Fox Television, which produces the adventure series.

Buffy will instantly boost UPN.  But the series also might look lost admist UPN's schlock-fuelled, guy-orientated lineup of pro wrestling and dim-bulb reality shows like Chains of Love.

Though it's a hit for WB, Buffy averages 4.4 million viewers a week.  That's only one-sixth of what Survivor routinely attracts on a major network like CBS.

Also, WB may well survive the loss of the Buffster.

Despite its high profile, Buffy the Vampire Slayer is only the fourth-most-watched show on WB, trailing 7th Heaven, Dawson's Creek and Charmed.  In addition, WB still has high-quality female-appeal series like Felicity and Gilmore Girls in its lineup.

Sure, UPN is smiling now.

But even as Buffy the Vampire Slayer gives the network a jolt of publicity and ratings energy, there's always the chance UPN has paid way too much for a chunk of ageing eye candy.

No disrespect, Buffy, but even the best shows start slowing down after 5 years.  Gee, it could be time for a crossover episode with WWF Smackdown.

The Rock and Buffy - now that's true UPN love.

Source: The Detroit Free Press, 25 April.  Back to the top

DRAWING BLOOD

26.04.2001 - Will next season's move of Buffy the Vampire Slayer from the WB to UPN be enough to drive a stake through the heart of the TV industry's standard business practices?

On its face, the fact that a show that ranked in 105th place in last week's Nielsens is moving from one fifth-rate network to another shouldn't be considered industry-rattling news.  But consider these three facts:

* Despite its low ratings - it's not even the WB's biggest hit (that would be 7th Heaven) - Buffy has a very high media profile, thanks to an attractive young cast and its position as a darling of many critics (including this one).  When changes happen to the show, Hollywood notices.

* Buffy is moving because UPN offered to pay more money ($2.3 million per episode) than the WB (a reported $1.8 million) was reportedly offering.  It's the first time a show has changed networks solely for money reasons; traditionally, series like JAG or Taxi moved to a new network only after being cancelled by their old one.

* Buffy is produced by 20th Century Fox Television, a subsidiary of Rupert Murdoch's NewsCorp.  Half of UPN's major affiliate stations are in the process of being purchased by NewsCorp.  Murdoch is also reportedly interested in buying an ownership stake in the network itself.

When the FCC eliminated the "fin/syn" rules that prevented studios from owning networks, and networks from owning the shows they aired, many in Hollywood worried that vertical integration would become the rule, not the exception.

If Disney owns ABC, why would it sell one of its shows to NBC?  Why would CBS/Viacom sell one of its shows to Fox?  Just as important, why would NBC want to buy a Disney show, watch it turn into a hit, and then lose it to ABC when renewal talks began?

Earlier this year, Paramount, part of the Viacom empire, used the threat of moving Frasier to CBS to jack up its renewal price at NBC.

Meanwhile, outgoing WB CEO Jamie Kellner was doing his best Chicken Little impression throughout the Buffy negotiations, asserting that if Buffy moved to the Fox network (a hot rumour at the time), it would end all trace of civility between rival media conglomerates.

"Twentieth Television has made an inauspicious decision for the television industry by taking one of their own programmes off of a non-affiliated network and placing it on a network in which they have a large vested interest, through ... public comments that Fox and UPN are discussing ways to merge," read a WB statement.

UPN and Fox studio execs insist the move had nothing to do with vertical integration, that UPN gets a badly needed signature series to replace the retiring Star Trek: Voyager, while Fox gets an extra $22 million over the two-year deal.

Right now, most of Hollywood is too gripped by preparations for potential strikes by the writers' and actors' guilds to worry too much about the Buffy move; it may take another season or two before we see whether there's any real fallout.

In the meantime, the most pressing question may be what happens to Angel the Buffy spin-off that's still under contract at the WB.  The Buffy deal contains a clause obligating UPN to pick up Angel should the WB cancel it (either out of spite or because they feel it can't stand on its own).

And the WB dropped a big hint about its Angel intentions in the aforementioned statements, which also said, "We wish Sarah (Michelle Gellar), (Buffy creator) Joss (Whedon) and (Angel co-creator) David Greenwalt well."

Source: The New Jersey Star-Ledger, 24 April.  Back to the top

MORE ON THE UPN MOVE

24.04.2001 - A snippet from yesterday's Wanda column on E! Online:

Are you saying you want the WB to cancel Angel?

As much as it pains me to say it, yes.  Honestly, I don't think they deserve to keep it, the way Jamie Kellner disrespected Joss and Buffy over the past few months.  And if Angel gets the boot from the WB, it can follow Buffy over to UPN, keeping the shows in a unified block, where they belong.

Actually this isn't strictly accurate as UPN are committed to picking up Angel should the WB cancel it.  Back to the top

BUFFY LOSS TAKES A BITE OUT OF WB

24.04.2001 - Hollywood (Variety) - Losing Buffy the Vampire Slayer won't kill the WB - but it's gonna sting.

While the 20th Century Fox TV-produced series isn't the WB's top-rated show - that honour belongs to Monday powerhouse 7th Heaven - Buffy is the anchor of the WB's Tuesday lineup, with an average audience of about 4.5 million viewers.  Star Sarah Michelle Gellar is one of the WB's icons.

It's too early to say just what the WB will do on Tuesday nights next season.  First up, the network must decide whether to keep or kill Buffy spinoff Angel.

Ratings-wise, some industry insiders believe Angel would suffer without the benefit of a Buffy lead-in.  The network may also want to make a clean break from the entire Buffy franchise.

On the other hand, cancelling Angel would mean giving UPN another hour of successful programming, which the latter network would likely use to build a whole new Tuesday.

Assuming Angel flies, one leading contender for the 8pm Tuesday slot would be Smallville, the young Superman series that already has a 13-episode commitment.  The show's superhero-as-teen plot mirrors that of early Buffy.

Another possibility would be Dead Last, which revolves around a Scooby Doo-like rock band that solves mysteries.  It also has a 13-episode order.

In addition to its Tuesday problem, the WB will have other holes to plug next season.

On Monday, Roswell was all but dead before the Buffy move.  It's now buried.  On Fridays, the WB will have to fill an hour left by the likely cancellation of teen drama Popular.  The WB will also need at least another hour of programming on Sunday, and quite possibly two hours.

Perhaps most importantly, losing Buffy means losing the WB's most-praised series.  Last year, the series snagged Emmy and Golden Globe nods and made the 10-best lists of critics from Time, TV Guide and USA Today.

While plaudits don't always equal ratings, the WB has used praise for Buffy - and other shows, including newcomer Gilmore Girls - to build a brand as a home for quality young adult drama.  That mission now gets a bit tougher.

Source: Reuters/Variety.  Back to the top