With FOX’s midseason line-up underway, it’s time to look at how its scripted series have performed this season.
The network controversially canceled 9-1-1: Lone Star last year despite no data suggesting that the long-delayed Season 5 would be a disaster in the ratings.
That decision could haunt FOX because the Rob Lowe-fronted drama remains a solid option.
But FOX has shifted gears a lot in recent years in an attempt to have more cost-effective programming on its schedule.
It’s no surprise that some of its shows are not getting much recognition.
Let’s dive in.
9-1-1: Lone Star – Canceled
We knew the writing was on the wall when FOX kept the show off the air for over a year, but somehow, we never thought they’d pull the plug.
Season to date, 9-1-1: Lone Star Season 5 is averaging 4.3 million viewers and a 0.42 rating among adults 18-49, with a week of DVR factored in.
Those numbers are enough to make 9-1-1: Lone Star FOX’s most-watched scripted series.
But as we always say here at TV Fanatic, longer-running scripted shows come with a much higher price tag than newbies, so FOX’s new cost-effective conscious regime believes it can do better with newer shows.
It probably didn’t help 9-1-1: Lone Star’s case that the original 9-1-1 moved to ABC last year, so it was inevitable that the offshoot wouldn’t have much longer.
The sad part is that with these ratings, it could survive on ABC with a budget cut.
As things stand, the 9-1-1: Lone Star series finale is set for February.
