From the U.S.★Pilot Season Arrives in American TV Drama

The pilot season has arrived in the U.S., when fall drama pilot episodes are announced. This year, the four major networks (NBC, CBS, ABC, FOX) combined have slightly fewer than last year, with just over 80 pilots. According to Ad Age, remakes and medical dramas are prominent, while family-oriented dramas and semi-autobiographical works are also emphasized. Furthermore, the trend of using star actors from the film industry as the trump card for pilots has grown even stronger. The major networks' key programs are as follows.

NBC: Promising shows include the crime suspense series "The Blacklist" starring James Spader, the apocalyptic comedy-drama "Apocalypse," the medical drama "Chicago Med" (pictured), a spin-off of "Chicago Fire" depicting Chicago firefighters, and the police drama "Shades of Blue" starring Jennifer Lopez.

CBS: The spin-off of the long-running FBI drama "Criminal Minds," "Beyond Borders," drew 10.4 million viewers for its April special. The TV adaptation of the suspense action film "Limitless" is also generating buzz.

ABC: New thrillers like "The Catch," executive produced by hitmaker Shonda Rhimes, and the legal drama "The Advocates" starring Kim Raver are drawing attention.

FOX: The drama "Empire," which depicts the behind-the-scenes world of the music industry with the king of hip-hop as the main character, is expected to continue performing well. A six-episode revival of "The X-Files" and a new comedy-horror series starring Ryan Murphy, "Scream Queens," have been greenlit. In addition to the TV version of "Frankenstein" and the drama adaptation of Neil Gaiman's American comic "Sandman," "Lucifer," a pilot for a sequel to the movie "Minority Report" has also been produced.

Source: Ad Age
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