Upfront Week 2012: Mindy Kaling, Demi Lovato, Britney Spears join Fox; 'Glee ... - Washington Post (blog)

Britney Spears will join ‘X Factor.’ (AP Photo/Leonid Naidiouk - ASSOCIATED PRESS) Fox will plant four comedies on Tuesday â€" including one originally developed by NBC for NBC star Mindy Kaling, which will immediately follow this season’s most promising Fox fall launch, “New Girl.”

The network will protect its investment in flailing “Glee” by moving it to the safe zone, aka the post-singing show timeslot on Thursdays, where it will follow “The X Factor” in the fall and “American Idol” in the spring.

At its new-schedule unveiling to advertisers in New York Monday afternoon, Fox is expected to trot out new “X Factor” judges Britney Spears â€" and Demi Lovato, as part of an overhaul to Simon Cowell’s singing competition, returning to Wednesday and Thursday nights at 8.

Kiefer Sutherland’s number crunching “Touch” is moved to Fridays to join “Fringe’s” final season and Jordana Spiro’s “Mob Doctor” will replace Hugh Laurie’s “angry doctor” drama “House” on Monday nights.

At midseason, Fox will introduce its new Kevin Bacon-chasing-James-Purefoy’s-serial-killing-cult “The Following” on Monday.

And, as promised, “Cops” is toast in the fall, and Saturday is the new “Fox Sports Saturday.” Fox swears “Cops” is returning in midseason. Put it in your calendar in pencil.

Sunday’s Animation Domination will start with the always hilarious NFL football and “The OT” in the fall, followed by “The Simpsons,” “Bob’s Burgers,” “Family Guy” and “American Dad.” “The Cleveland Show” will be back after football.

In “The Mindy Project,” which “The Office” writer/star Mindy Kaling developed at NBC for NBC, only NBC passed, Fox says she plays a skilled â€" thank goodness or it would not be a comedy -- OB/GYN trying to pursue her dream of becoming the perfect woman, finding the perfect man and getting her perfect romantic comedy ending.

“Ben and Kate” is the other new comedy rounding out the Tuesday four-com block. It stars Nat Faxon, of “Bad Teacher” fame, who was also the Oscar winning co-screenwriter of the George Clooney flick “The Descendants,” as a goofy guy who becomes the many for his uptight single-mom sister’s kid.

Sometime during the season, Fox will swap out one of its Tuesday comedies to introduce “The Goodwin Games,” starring Scott Foley, Becki Newton, and Jake Lacy as estranged siblings who are forced back together in order to inherit $20 million after dad, Beau Bridges, dies.

“With first-year culture-driving hits like ‘The New Girl’ and ‘The X Factor’ and strong returning tentpoles like ‘American Idol’ and ‘Glee,’ we were laser focused on our development and it has really paid off,” Fox programming chief Kevin Reilly said in Monday’s announcement.

Golly, how we wish we had a buck for every time Reilly said “laser focused.”

FOX 2012-2013 PRIMETIME SCHEDULE

(All Times ET/PT)

MONDAY

8:00-9:00 PM BONES

9:00-10:00 PM THE MOB DOCTOR (new)

(THE FOLLOWING joins in midseason.)

TUESDAY

8:00-8:30 PM RAISING HOPE

8:30-9:00 PM BEN AND KATE (new)

9:00-9:30 PM NEW GIRL

9:30-10:00 PM THE MINDY PROJECT (new)

(THE GOODWIN GAMES (new) joins in midseason.)

WEDNESDAY

8:00-10:00 PM THE X FACTOR (fall) / AMERICAN IDOL (midseason)

THURSDAY

8:00-9:00 PM THE X FACTOR Results (fall) / AMERICAN IDOL Results (midseason)

9:00-10:00 PM GLEE

FRIDAY

8:00-9:00 PM TOUCH

9:00-10:00 PM FRINGE (fall)

HELL’S KITCHEN returns in midseason.

SATURDAY

7:00-10:30 PM FOX SPORTS SATURDAY (fall)

COPS returns in midseason.

ANIMATION DOMINATION HIGH-DEF (new) will join late-prime in 2013.

SUNDAY

7:00-7:30 PM NFL Game (fall) / ANIMATION DOMINATION (encores)

7:30-8:00 PM THE OT (fall) / THE CLEVELAND SHOW

8:00-8:30 PM THE SIMPSONS

8:30-9:00 PM BOB’S BURGERS

9:00-9:30 PM FAMILY GUY

9:30-10:00 PM AMERICAN DAD

More from Upfront Week:

VIDEO: Check out previews of NBC’s new shows

CBS officially cancels “CSI: Miami”

NBC reveals schedule: ‘Community’ to Friday, ‘The Voice' to launch in fall

CW orders five new shows including ‘Carrie Diaries,’ renews ‘Gossip Girl,’ ‘Nikita,’ ‘Hart of Dixie’

ABC picks up more seasons of ‘Happy Endings,’ ‘Scandal,’ ‘Wife Swap’

NBC renews ‘Parks and Recreation,’ ‘The Office,’ ‘Up All Night,’ ’Whitney’

An early look at Upfront Week 2012

NBC renews ‘Community,’ '30 Rock,’ ‘Parenthood’

‘Cougar Town’ moves from ABC to TBS

Fox picks up mob doc, serial killer show, Mindy Kaling comedy

Fox re-ups ‘Touch,’ abandons ‘Alcatraz’

NBC renews ‘Law & Order: SVU’ for a 14th season

NBC orders comedy about dysfunctional First Family

NBC picks up shows starring Anne Heche, Matthew Perry; plus, Ryan Murphy comedy and JJ Abrams drama

PHOTO GALLERY: Which shows are on the bubble?

PHOTO GALLERY: Which shows are already dead?