NEW YORK — The CW Network unveiled the schedule for its 2010-2011 season today at a presentation for advertisers, affiliates and national media in the Theater at Madison Square Garden, where singer Katy Perry rocked the house to open the show. The announcement was made by Dawn Ostroff, President of Entertainment, The CW.
"After just four short years as a network, The CW will premiere our strongest schedule ever this fall, with a combination of hit shows and exciting new series giving us all-original programming five nights a week for the first time," said Ostroff. "We've been growing this network one hit at a time and we're poised for a great 2010-11 season. This year The Vampire Diaries was a smash out of the box for us, and another freshman show, Life Unexpected, also opened strong and began building an intense, loyal following. On the heels of breaking Gossip Girl and 90210 the last two seasons and the enduring popularity of Smallville, Supernatural, One Tree Hill and America's Next Top Model, we had more strong program development and believe we have the goods once again with Nikita and Hellcats, two shows that are fun, fast and loud, and will enable us to make noise in the marketplace this fall. These hot new dramas will extend The CW brand and our hold on the coveted young female demographic, with international action-film star Jackie-Chan protégé Maggie Q starring as Nikita, an empowered woman fighting for justice, and Ashley Tisdale of High School Musical and Aly Michalka of Bandslam in Hellcats, a lively new series about a pre-law student whose life turns upside down when she joins the cheerleading team at a major Southern university.
"Additionally, we're excited about two new reality series coming to The CW. First up in summer 2010 will be original programming from Plain Jane, with each week featuring a full-blown makeover for a young woman including a style transformation, new wardrobe and confidence-building assistance from the show's host, British fashion expert, Louise Roe. Midseason will feature Shedding for the Wedding, [working title] where ten overweight engaged couples will compete for the wedding of their dreams. In addition to this powerful fall schedule, you can expect more news on original programming for next season down the line as we continue to grow our business. We're also as committed as ever to utilizing online, social media and new technologies to attract ‘Generation Digital,' the passionate and highly engaged young viewers who get their CW fix whenever and wherever they want it."
On Monday, the Left Coast/Right Coast pairing of 90210 and Gossip Girl will cover a lot of ground with viewers, providing cutting-edge drama, the latest in high fashion and backstabbing betrayal with the beautiful beach-set of 90210 from 8:00-9:00 p.m. and the powerful and privileged Upper East-siders of Gossip Girl from 9:00-10:00 p.m. Despite tough competition last season, 90210 became the most DVR'd show on television, with Live-Plus-7-Day ratings that more than double its women 18-34 audience. Together, 90210 and Gossip Girl have the highest concentration of women 18-34 on network television, and Gossip Girl continues to be one of the most buzzed-about shows on the planet. Next season's premiere will take Serena (Blake Lively), Blair (Leighton Meester) and Chuck (Ed Westwick) to the City of Lights – Paris, France.
On Tuesday, One Tree Hill, the show loyal viewers demanded back, finds a new home in the 8:00-9:00 p.m. hour, followed by the second season of Life Unexpected, last season's critically acclaimed show about a young girl who reunites with her birth parents after growing up in foster care. Life Unexpected has a rapidly growing audience, and the two series are already a tried-and-true teaming, since Life Unexpected, premiered at midseason behind One Tree Hill with strong audience retention.
On Wednesday, America's Next Top Model will be back in its successful 8:00-9:00 p.m. timeslot. During its recently completed 14th cycle, Top Model added a new judge, fashion editor André Leon Talley, and the show was number one in its time period with women 18-34 and adults 18-34. Last week's cycle 14 finale episode won the 8:00 p.m. hour in women 18-34, adults 18-34, females 12-34 and female teens.
The models give way to cheerleaders when the new drama Hellcats premieres in the 9:00-10:00 p.m. hour. Hellcats is a pumped-up drama about a young pre-law student (Aly Michalka, Bandslam) whose world is turned upside-down when she loses her scholarship and has to join the college's competitive cheerleading squad. This fun, energetic series is a behind-the-scenes look at the drama, politics and pressure surrounding the football program at a Southern university. Ashley Tisdale (High School Musical) also stars as a young woman who is totally committed to the cheerleading squad to realize her dreams.
The CW broke a major hit on Thursday nights last fall with The Vampire Diaries, now the network's top-rated show. The vampires, witches and mere mortals of Mystic Falls will remain in the 8:00-9:00 p.m. timeslot, providing the perfect jumping-off point for the non-stop action and international intrigue of the drama Nikita from 9:00-10:00 p.m. Nikita stars international action-film star and martial arts expert Maggie Q (Mission Impossible III) in the title role as a spy and assassin for a top secret U.S. government agency, who rebels against the system that created her and will stop at nothing to bring their powerful operation to an end. Shane West (E.R.) and Lyndsy Fonseca (Kick Ass) also star.
On Friday, two rock solid hits, Smallville and Supernatural, reunite for a great two-hour block. In its explosive tenth and final season, Smallville will remain in the 8:00-9:00 p.m. timeslot, where it gave the CW its best numbers ever in the time period with scripted programming last year. The series will bring Clark Kent's epic journey to a conclusion worthy of a superhero. In the 9:00-10:00 p.m. hour, the Winchester Brothers continue their heroic battle to ensure that good triumphs over evil, no matter what the personal cost may be to the brothers themselves. Last season, Supernatural's ratings were up year-to-year with women 18-49.
Also see: The CW's Primetime Schedule 2010-2011: New Shows and Descriptions
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