Fox announces midseason schedule: 'Dollhouse' and 'Terminator' on Fridays; 'Lie' after 'Idol'

Fox announced a dramatic shakeup to its midseason plans, establishing a Friday sci-fi block and giving a new drama series an “American Idol” lead-in.

-- Joss Whedon's highly anticipated "Dollhouse" is going to air on low-rated Fridays. The series was originally scheduled to air with "24" on Mondays. As noted in the previous post, there have been some concerns about how the series might perform. Instead, "House" will open the night, followed by "24."

-- The modestly rated "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles" is also moving to Friday and will serve as lead-in to "Dollhouse."

-- "Idol" will premiere Jan. 13 at 8 p.m. and will include the usual two-hour, two-part rollout. "Idol" and "Fringe" will still partner on Tuesdays as planned.

-- Wednesday was originally going to have "House" leading into the "American Idol" results show. Now "Idol" has been shifted to 8 p.m. and will instead give TV's biggest lead-in to new drama "Lie to Me," which stars Tim Roth as a "human lie detector." Fox is very excited about this show, though it will likely to draw comparisons to CBS' freshman breakout title "The Mentalist."

-- Instead of reality block of "Hell's Kitchen" and "Secret Millionaire" on Thursdays, Fox will partner "Hell's" with a lead-in from "Bones." This is a promotion for the crime drama, which has performed strong this season. Fox had originally intended to shift "Bones" to Fridays in midseason. "Millionaire" will air in December.

-- "Hole in the Wall," despite many assuming the game show was a goner, is returning midseason to help launch Fox's Sunday animated block in the 7 p.m. hour.

Absent from the current schedule: Live-action comedy or new reality shows. No dates yet for Fox's new animated shows such "The Cleveland Show" either.

"Fringe" and "Dollhouse" are part of Fox's Remote-Free TV plan, where advertisers pay a premium to sponsor a show in exchange for Fox running about half as many ads  per hour. In the case of "Fringe," the move has been successful, say media buyers who have studied the results. Fox says that even though "Dollhouse" changed time periods to Fridays, it will still be Remote-Free TV.

The "Dollhouse" shift to Friday is certain to provoke a despondent cry from Whedon fans, especially after having watched "Firefly" wither away on the same night. Fox could have given the series a premiere behind "Idol" before shifting it to Fridays -- something the network has done a few times to boost sampling of new shows. And if that weren't unlucky enough, "Dollhouse" premieres on Friday the 13th.

Full Fox midseason schedule and premiere dates below.

MONDAY
Monday, Jan. 5:
7:30 PM-CC ET        TOSTITOS FIESTA BOWL (LIVE)

Monday, Jan. 12:
8:00-10:00 PM          24 (Season Premiere, Part 2)

Mondays, beginning Jan. 19:
8:00-9:00 PM            HOUSE (Time Period Premiere)
9:00-10:00 PM          24 (Time Period Premiere)

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TUESDAY
Tuesday, Jan. 13:
8:00-10:00 PM          AMERICAN IDOL (Season Premiere, Part 1)

Tuesdays, beginning Jan. 20:
8:00-9:00 PM            AMERICAN IDOL (Time Period Premiere)
9:00-10:00 PM          FRINGE

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WEDNESDAY

Wednesday, Jan. 14:
8:00-10:00 PM          AMERICAN IDOL (Season Premiere, Part 2)

Wednesdays, beginning Jan. 21:
8:00-9:00 PM            AMERICAN IDOL (Time Period Premiere)
9:00-10:00 PM          LIE TO ME (Series Premiere)

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THURSDAY
Thursday, Jan. 1:
7:30 PM-CC ET        FEDEX ORANGE BOWL (LIVE)

Thursday, Jan. 8:
7:30 PM-CC ET        FEDEX BCS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME (LIVE)

Thursdays, beginning Jan. 15:
8:00-9:00 PM            BONES (Time Period Premiere)
9:00-10:00 PM          KITCHEN NIGHTMARES

Thursdays, beginning Jan. 29:
8:00-9:00 PM            BONES
9:00-10:00 PM          HELL’S KITCHEN (Season Premiere)

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FRIDAY
Friday, Jan. 2:
7:30 PM-CC ET        ALLSTATE SUGAR BOWL (LIVE)

Friday, Jan. 9:
8:00-10:00 PM          FOX MOVIE SPECIAL:  BRUCE ALMIGHTY

Fridays, beginning Jan. 16 (no change to lineup):
8:00-9:00 PM            ARE YOU SMARTER THAN A 5th GRADER?
9:00-10:00 PM          DON’T FORGET THE LYRICS!

Fridays, beginning Feb. 13:
8:00-9:00 PM            TERMINATOR: THE SARAH CONNOR CHRONICLES
(Time Period Premiere)
9:00-10:00 PM          DOLLHOUSE (Series Premiere)

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SATURDAY
Saturdays, beginning Jan. 3 (no change to lineup):
8:00-8:30 PM            COPS
8:30-9:00 PM            COPS
9:00-10:00 PM          AMERICA'S MOST WANTED: AMERICA FIGHTS BACK
11:00 PM-Midnight   MADtv
Midnight-12:30 AM   TALKSHOW WITH SPIKE FERESTEN

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SUNDAY
Sunday, Jan. 11:
8:00-10:00 PM          24 (Season Premiere, Part 1)

Sundays, beginning Jan. 18:
7:00-7:30 PM            HOLE IN THE WALL (Time Period Premiere)
7:30-8:00 PM            HOLE IN THE WALL (Time Period Premiere)
8:00-10:00 PM          ANIMATION DOMINATION
(THE SIMPSONS, KING OF THE HILL, FAMILY GUY and AMERICAN DAD)