Castle will air at 10pm Mondays December 3rd, 2008

Nathan Fillion, Bobby Canavale and Amber Tamblyn will headline new series for ABC this spring.

It would really help if they all could deliver hits for the Disney-owned network. ABC needs a new hit. Bad.

Let’s start with “Cupid,” a new version of the show that starred Jeremy Piven, who has now moved on to HBO’s “Entourage.” Cannavale of “Will & Grace” takes the title role of a man who believes he’s the Roman god of love. Sarah Paulson takes the role of his psychiatrist; Paula Marshall had that role originally, and you can catch her in “Gary Unmarried.” “Cupid” will air at 10 p.m. Tuesdays, starting March 24.

Fillion of “Desperate Housewives” plays a mystery novelist in “Castle.” As he helps hunt for a serial killer, the novelist falls for a New York police detective (Stana Katic). The novelist also has a Broadway star mom (Susan Sullivan) and a teenage daughter (Molly Quinn). “Castle” will air at 10 p.m. Mondays, starting March 9.

Tamblyn of “Joan of Arcadia” stars in “The Unusuals,” which will air at 10 p.m. Wednesdays, starting April 8. She plays a New York vice detective who finds herself transferred to homicide. The cast also includes Terry Kinney, Adam Goldberg and Harold Perrineau of “Lost.”

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Castle Air Date Set December 3rd, 2008

ABC has filled in more of its midseason schedule, finding homes for new dramas “Castle,” “Cupid” and “The Unusuals” — albeit probably at the expense of a couple of the network’s current shows.

“Castle,” a light mystery drama starring Nathan Fillion (”Firefly,” “Drive”), will be first out of the gate at 10 p.m. ET Monday, March 9. It will take over the spot currently held by ” Boston Legal,” whose series finale is next week (the unscripted show “True Beauty” will occupy the hour starting in January).

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Fillion’s Castle – March 9, 10pm December 3rd, 2008

ABC and CBS are making plans for spring, finding homes for several more midseason skeins.

ABC is conducting an extreme 10 p.m. makeover after struggling with the timeslot this season. Blame it partly on the rise of DVRs: Studies have shown that viewers watch more of their pre-recorded fare during the 10 p.m. hour, and Alphabet execs believe they’ve been hit hard.

Net will take another stab at the timeslot — still a critical hour for affils, which depend on strong lead-ins for their local newscasts — with newcomers “Castle,” “Cupid” and “The Unusuals.”

Scheduling moves come following ABC’s decision not to move forward with new episodes of current 10 p.m. inhabitants “Eli Stone” and “Dirty Sexy Money.” (Another 10 p.m. entry, “Boston Legal,” is finishing its run at the end of fall.)

…

ABC’s week shapes up this way:

  • Mondays, starting March 9, the Alphabet will preem the crime-mystery skein “Castle.” Show takes over following the finale of the Ashton Kutcher/Tyra Banks reality skein “True Beauty,” which airs there starting in January.

“Castle,” from ABC Studios, stars Nathan Fillion as a novelist who discovers that a copycat killer is re-enacting crimes from his books. Andrew Marlowe created and exec produces; Armyan Bernstein, Barry Schindel, Rob Bowman and Laurie Zaks are also exec producers.

  • The Tuesday 10 p.m. slot will be filled in the winter with “Primetime: What Would You Do?,” which bows Jan. 6. “Primetime” will then make way for the new version of “Cupid,” which airs there starting March 24. (Both shows fill the void left by the vacating “Eli Stone.”)

Rob Thomas is behind the remake of his 1990s skein “Cupid,” this time starring Bobby Cannavale and Sarah Paulson. ABC Studios is the studio; Thomas exec produces with Jennifer Gwartz, Danielle Stokdyk, Dan Etheridge and Diane Ruggerio.

  • Wednesdays at 10 p.m. — as previously announced — will be filled by “Life on Mars” beginning in January. But once “Mars” ends its run, ABC is set to preem the cop drama “The Unusuals,” which bows there on April 8. “Dirty Sexy Money” had previously occupied that hour.

“The Unusuals” stars Amber Tamblyn as a cop assigned to the homicide division. Noah Hawley created and exec produces, with Robert DeLaurentis and Peter O’Fallon. Sony Pictures TV is the studio.

Both “Castle” and “The Unusuals” have their work cut out for them, going up against crime drama vets “CSI: Miami” and “CSI: NY.”

ABC and CBS also announced the midseason returns of their signature reality skeins. CBS unscripted staple “Survivor” is back for an 18th cycle Feb. 12, and “The Amazing Race” bows its 14th edition Feb. 15.

Alphabet’s “Dancing With the Stars” returns Monday, March 9, with a two-hour special, continuing with several more two-hour segs before reverting to its normal 90-minute size on March 30. The “Dancing” results show comes in on Tuesday, March 17, at 9 p.m.

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