Buh-bye Ben and Kate.
Fox, apparently abandoning its plan for a Tuesday night comedy block, has pulled the struggling sitcom from its primetime schedule effective immediately.
Fox says the family sitcom’s timeslot spot will be filled with back-to-back original episodes of Raising Hope from 8 to 9 p.m. ET beginning next week and continuing until Feb. 28, when Hope‘s one-hour season finale is broadcast.
On Tuesday, March 5, American Idol airs a two-hour special, followed by the Season 11 return of Hell’s Kitchen on Tuesday, March 12.
Gordon Ramsay and his crew of inept chefs will lead into New Girl and The Mindy Project, both remain unaffected by the change.
The cancellation marks the end of Fox’s attempt at launching a second two-hour block of comedies, which the network hoped would mirror its Sunday night animated comedy success.
Despite good buzz from critics heading into the new fall season, Ben and Kate failed to connect with viewers. Though it debuted to 4.2 million viewers and a 2.1 rating with adults 18-49, the sitcom has averaged just under 3 million sets of eyeballs and a 1.4 with adults 18-49.
Ben and Kate stars Oscar winner Nat Foxon as Ben, the oddball older brother of oh-so-serious single mom Kate, played by Dakota Johnson. Lucy Punch, Echo Kellum and Maggie Elizabeth Jones co-star.
Thoughts? Comment below!
Check out the latest behind-the-scenes TV news in Nuts & Bolts and the newest DVD releases courtesy of The DVD Dude or follow Greg on Twitter.
