“Simon Rich has delivered a wholly original, hilarious and fantastical view of single life that features an incredible performance from Jay Baruchel,” said Nick Grad, President of Original Programming, FX Networks and FX Productions..  “We feel this is the perfect fit for FXX and are thrilled to pick up the show.”

Based on Simon Rich’s short story collection The Last Girlfriend on Earth, Man Seeking Woman follows Josh (Baruchel), a naïve romantic on a quest for love. Rich wrote the pilot and will serve as showrunner on the project, while the likes of Eric Andre (Don’t Trust the B—- in Apt. 23), Britt Lower (Unforgettable), and Maya Erksine (Betas) will co-star.

Man Seeking Woman will be the first original comedy to premiere on FXX, a network that has previously only housed wayward FX comedies. While It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and The League have held their own with the network change, FXX needs to show that it’s more than encore programming, movies, and transplanted series, especially after projects previously earmarked for the network (e.g. Chozen) found their way to FX instead. FXX must find some type of network identity to set itself apart from FX and the rest of the television industry as a whole, something that Man Seeking Woman could provide in terms of tone, humor, and ambition; it helps that the network has a fairly full development slate with comedies from Zach Galifianakis, Charlie Kaufman, and Seth Rogen currently in the works, but still, it should be interesting to see what FXX deems worthy enough to be their opening shot in the war for scripted television audience.

Man Seeking Woman is set to premiere sometime next year on FXX.

Will you be watching Man Seeking Woman? Could this be the project that puts FXX on the map and helps the network establish an identity away from FX imports? What type of comedies would you like to see FXX pursue in the future?

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“We’ve had a wonderful partnership with Rob, Charlie and Glenn and over the past 10 years. They are fantastic and prolific producers, writers and actors, and it’s great to continue to support their talents for many years to come,” said FX Networks president of original programming Eric Schrier.

Though it’s as yet unclear what the network will pair The League with this coming fall, they’ve picked up a comedy from Tracy Morgan with the intention of pairing it with It’s Always Sunny next year. There’s been no information released about the series, created by Rob McElhenney, Charlie Day, Glenn Howerton and It’s Always Sunny writer Luvh Rakhe, though it’s been confirmed as a different project than Morgan’s FX pilot Do or Die. As a result of the FXX pickup, that series is no longer in play.

The Morgan project will likely be the first FXX original series, assuming the network allows The League to air on its own in the fall. Thus far, FXX has been a refuge for wayward FX comedies, as It’s Always Sunny, The League, Wilfred, and Legit have all aired or will eventually air on the FX offshoot. What was to be FXX’s maiden voyage into original scripted content, animated comedy Chozen, wound up on FX, where it recently completed its first season.

What do you hope It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia does with their next two seasons? Will the Morgan project be the first FXX series to breakout? Can The League survive without its It’s Always Sunny lead-in?

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The second season of Legit finds Jim wondering about the state of his romantic life, namely why he hasn’t had a relationship last longer than six months and whether he’s a sex addict, as well as dealing with Steve’s descent into alcoholism following the loss of custody of his daughter, now living with his ex-wife. At the same time, Billy is adjusting to an earth-shattering loss, new muscular dystrophy medication, and an unusual romantic entanglement that will have to withstand the judgments of Jim and Steve. Star Wars’ Carrie Fisher will guest star during season two as a television executive.

Ali G: Rezurection will consist of repurposed episodes of Da Ali G Show, complete with original introductions from creator/star Sacha Baron Cohen and episodes that never made it to American shores for the show’s run on HBO. The satirical series features Cohen playing a series of characters, including an ignorant British b-boy, an anti-Semitic Kazakhstani television reporter, and an Austrian fashionista, who interview unsuspecting Americans, political pundits, and celebrities.

You can check out a clip of Da Ali G Show below.

Will you be watching Legit this season? Are you happy that Ali G will get even more exposure to American audiences? What type of original comedies would you like to see FXX go after in the future?

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The comedies officially launched FXX on Wednesday night (September 4th), and retained most of their audience, despite the fact that the new channel is in 26 million fewer home than their former home, FX.

Though the shows have loyal followings, there was no guarantee that audiences would make the jump for the shows on a new night, let alone on a new network. Viewers had to do the work on their own to find FXX, which is replacing Fox Soccer on most major cable plans, and then, of course, remember that the shows now air on Wednesday rather than Thursdays.

According to Nielsen estimates, the season nine premiere of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia averaged 648,000 adults 18-49 – down from 809,000 with it’s premiere last October, though the show bested its viewership with men 18-34 (396,000 to 366,000 last year).

The League also showed promise, building from its Sunny lead-in, with 687,000 adults 18-49, down from 732,000 a year ago. The overall audience remained within 13% of last year’s viewership.

While FXX made one smart decision avoiding putting such male-skewing comedies opposite NFL programming on Thursdays, the scheduling shift now pits the comedies against first-run FX dramas The Bridge, now, and American Horror Story, next month. However, FX has said that one reason for differentiating the original network and the new comedy-centric FXX is to hopefully bring a younger skew to the latter – which was the case on Wednesday night’s opener, where comedies on FXX ranked best among men 18-34, and FX dramas performed best with men 25-54.

It will certainly be interesting to see how the numbers play out for FX/FXX dramas and comedies as the season continues. Hopefully with a bit more promotion, and the addition of FXX in homes, the network will more concretely prove itself.

In addition to It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and The League, FXX original comedies Legit and Chozen (an animated series) will be joining the lineup.

The post Comedies Hold Steady with Move to FXX appeared first on TVHackr.

Set to be available in 72 million homes come September 2nd at 7:00 a.m., FXX was formed earlier this year and will concentrate on (mostly comedy) programing that specifically target the 18-34 demographic. In addition to the three mentioned, Jim Jefferies vehicle Legit will also be making the move to the network, also joining animated comedy Chozen, the first new series greenlit specifically for FXX. The network has already acquired syndication rights to the likes of Parks and Recreation, Sports Night, and Raising Hope in order to fill its airwaves and get on its feet.

FX, meanwhile, will focus on dramas aimed at the 18-49 demographic, keeping Archer, Wilfred, and Louie in its comedy stable while expanding its drama slate with the likes of The Americans and The Bridge. The network has also made plans to enter into the world of limited-run programming through potential miniseries about Puritan settlers at Plymouth, an international luxury hotel in Paris, a reunion of four forty-something friends, and bank robber Willie Sutton. They’ve already ordered one limited series in Fargo, an adaptation of the 1996 Oscar-winning Coen Brothers move of the same name.

What do you think of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and The League moving to Wednesdays? Can Totally Biased adapt to its new format? Should FX have split into two different networks at this point in time?

The post It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, The League, and Totally Biased to Premiere September 4th on FXX appeared first on TVHackr.

“It’s great to be in business with Grant, Danny, Jody, David and Rough House and this is the perfect first series order for FXX,” said Nick Grad, President, Original Programming, FX Networks and FX Productions.  “Chozen is an outrageous and ballsy comedy, but it’s also a very smart examination of the rap culture.”

An off-shoot of FX, new cable network FXX will make launch on September 2nd in 72 million homes and feature comedies that skew toward the 18-34 demographic, leaving 18-49-centric dramas (and a handful of other comedies) for FX. Making the move from FX to FXX are It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, The League, Legit, and Totally Biased with W. Kamau Bell, which will be converted from a weekly series to a nightly strip.

It should be interesting to see how FX and FXX schedule their programming and the extent to which they avoid stepping on one another’s toes. While the entire point of the split is to target different audiences, FX will still be airing comedies and likely against FXX, should the latter continue its mothership’s tradition of airing comedy on Thursdays. If so, Chozen might have to go up against Archer, which experienced strong ratings increases during its most recent season and could keep the former from fulfilling its potential.

Will you be watching Chozen? Do you think that FXX should go after dramas, as long as they’re appealing to the 18-34 demographic? Can FX successfully split into different networks and restock its programming shelves as a result?

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