Fall 2013 TV preview: Watch the trailers
Executives from the top TV networks are gathered in New York City this week to unveil their hot new shows. But the real drama seems to be off-screen, as speculation runs rampant about what ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox and the CW will do in the face of increasingly sagging ratings and splintering audiences. Despite the concerns, the new network lineups appear to be a mix of tried-and-true formats (crime and mystery of the week), big stars (“The Michael J. Fox Show”) and complicated family dynamics.
Cable, Netflix and the Web may be getting an increasing share of the audience, but network execs hope these first glimpses of their new offerings will be enough to catch new viewers. Click the images below to watch trailers of the shows.
NBC
FOX
ABC
CBS
CW
'The Blacklist'
Mondays on NBC
In this mash-up of "Silence of the Lambs" and "Homeland," James Spader plays a master criminal who mysteriously gives himself up to the FBI and offers information on a string of terrorists. The catch is that he insists on working with an FBI rookie (Megan Boone).
'Sean Saves the World'
Thursdays on NBC
Sean Hayes plays a gay, divorced dad who has to juggle both his teenage daughter who has just moved in with him (Sami Isler) and his mother (Linda Lavin).
'The Michael J. Fox Show'
Thursdays on NBC
Michael J. Fox's return to TV comedy puts the star's battle with Parkinson's front and center as he plays a TV news anchor afflicted with the disease. The anchor decides to return to work, much as Fox decided to return to starring on his own show.
'Ironside'
Wednesdays on NBC
Blair Underwood plays a tough, wheelchair-bound police detective in this remake of the hit series from the late '60s and early '70s starring Raymond Burr.
'Welcome to the Family'
Thursdays on NBC
Mike O'Malley and Ricardo Chavira play fathers who are reluctantly becoming in-laws after Chavira's son gets O'Malley's daughter pregnant. Lots of culture clashes ensue.
'Dracula'
Fridays on NBC
Jonathan Rhys Myers plays the vampiric count, who has arrived in Victorian-era London with a diabolical plan that could get more complicated when he falls for a mortal woman.
'Almost Human'
Mondays on Fox
Karl Urban plays a human cop paired with a robotic partner, played by Michael Ealy, in this futuristic drama produced by J.J. Abrams.
'Sleepy Hollow'
Mondays on Fox
Ichabod Crane (Tom Mison) comes back to life in modern day to once again do battle with the Headless Horseman. But it appears the Horseman isn't the only supernatural threat he'll need to defeat.
'Brooklyn Nine-Nine'
Tuesdays on Fox
Andy Samberg plays a goof-off police detective who has to learn to grow up when he gets a no-nonsense new captain, played by Andre Braugher.
'Dads'
Tuesdays on Fox
Seth Green and Giovanni Ribisi plays video-game makers who have to compromise their bachelor lifestyles when their dads move in with them.
'Enlisted'
Fridays on Fox
Three enlisted brothers get into all kinds of hijinks on the Florida Army base they call home.
'Gang Related'
Not yet scheduled on Fox
Ramon Rodriguez plays an anti-gang cop who secretly has loyalties to one of the gangs he's supposed to be taking down. RZA plays his partner, and "Lost's" Terry O'Quinn plays their captain.
'Back in the Game'
Wednesdays on ABC
James Caan and Maggie Lawson play a father and daughter with a strained relationship who are learning to work things out while she becomes a Little League baseball coach.
'Trophy Wife'
Tuesdays on ABC
Malin Akerman marries a wealthy, older man (Bradley Whitford) who already has a house full of kids. The new stepmom must learn how to handle it all.
'Mixology'
Net yet scheduled on ABC
Ten singles hang out at a bar hoping to find love. The series claims it will show what happens to these people over the course of one night in one bar.
'Betrayal'
Sundays on ABC
Sex and politics get all jumbled up in this soapy melodrama about an attorney’s wife (Hannah Ware) who has an affair with a man who turns out to be the opposing council in her attorney husband’s big case. Expect tears and yelling to ensue.
'Mind Games'
Not yet scheduled on ABC
Christian Slater and Steve Zahn play brothers who run a company that uses psychological manipulation to get people to change their minds without realizing it, hopefully to improve life for the better.
'Resurrection'
Sundays on ABC
A young boy who’s been thought dead for 30 years mysteriously returns to his family, and no one can figure out why in this supernatural-themed melodrama.
'Hostages'
Mondays on CBS
Toni Collette is a top surgeon tasked with operating on the president of the United States. Dylan McDermott is an FBI hostage negotiator who actually wants the president to die, and takes Collette’s family hostage to get what he wants in this family/political thriller.
'We Are Men'
Mondays on CBS
Four recently divorced guys (Tony Shalhoub, Chris Smith, Kal Penn and Jerry O’Connell) live in the same apartment complex and learn to move on with their lives by taking solace in friendship and dude stuff.
'The Crazy Ones'
Thursdays on CBS
Robin Williams plays a zany ad man and Sarah Michelle Gellar plays his Type-A daughter who runs an ad agency with him in this comedy series from executive producer David E. Kelley.
'Intelligence'
Mondays on CBS; midseason
Josh Holloway isn’t the Six-Million Dollar Man, but he does play an ex-Special Forces soldier who has a fancy microchip implanted in his head that allows him to access the global information grid. The government, understandably, decides to use him as a secret weapon.
'Mom'
Mondays on CBS
Anna Faris and Allison Janney play a mother and daughter with substance-abuse issues who attempt to reconcile their relationship in this comedy from CBS’ comedy king, Chuck Lorre.
'The Millers'
Thursdays on CBS
Will Arnett stars as Nathan Miller, a recently divorced news reporter looking forward to living the single life until his parents' marital problems unexpectedly derail his plans. Margo Martindale portrays his meddlesome mother, Carol, who decides to move in with him.
'Reign'
Thursdays on the CW
Ever wondered what Mary, Queen of Scots, was like in her teenage years? This series starring Adelaide Kane as Mary will give you a good idea.
Star-Crossed'
Not yet scheduled on the CW
This “Romeo & Juliet” tale is set in high school with a human girl and an alien guy who fall in forbidden love.
'The 100'
Not yet scheduled on the CW
Decades after a nuclear war has caused humanity to evacuate Earth, 100 good-looking young people are selected to return and check the place out.
'The Originals'
Tuesdays on the CW
Calling all Anne Rice fans! This “Vampire Diaries” spinoff takes bloodsucker Klaus (Joseph Morgan) down to New Orleans, Lestat country, where he gets involved in all new mischief.
'The Tomorrow People'
Wednesdays on the CW
Robbie Amell, cousin of “Arrow” star Stephen Amell, plays a young man with special powers in this remake of the 1970s British children’s show.