Fri-Yay: Is Hulu Moving Away From Comedy?; Antenna TV to Air New Year Kickoff with Coach Marathon

Friday, November 17, 2017

Fri-Yay: Is Hulu Moving Away From Comedy?; Antenna TV to Air New Year Kickoff with Coach Marathon

It's time for another edition of Fri-Yay! That means we will take a look back on some sitcom happenings in recent days or weeks or other fun sitcomy stuff. It's a sitcom lover's paradise! Happy Fri-Yay!

Hulu

by Vincent

This week, Hulu announced the cancellation of Difficult People. Difficult People was in its third season, and although it was never a huge hit, it had gained a dedicated following and was one of the first Hulu originals that seemed to grab a decent-sized following. After Difficult People came Casual, another half-hour comedy (with dramatic elements) that gained some minor awards attention and a dedicated fanbase. The success of those two shows was combined with Hulu's acquisition of The Mindy Project after it was cancelled by Fox. Hulu seemed to be the home of beloved, if not incredibly well watched, comedies. However, over the past few months, Hulu has quietly announced the end of nearly its entire comedy slate. Casual will end with its next season, The Mindy Project is currently airing its final season, and Difficult People was cancelled without even an announcement.

This is an interesting move considering quirky, off-beat comedies and dramedies were what made Hulu stand out from its streaming competitors. However, Hulu was undoubtedly the little guy in the streaming wars - until it became the first streaming service to take home an Outstanding Series award with The Handmaid's Tale this year. The Handmaid's Tale was a cultural phenomenon that toppled over everything else Hulu had done up to that point, so it's not especially surprising that they would be switching up directions. Still, it's unfortunate to see any service that was once big on comedy turn their back towards it, so let's hope Hulu still has room for some original comedies.

Coach

Huddle around your TV New Year's Day for 18-straight hours of friends, football and fun with Antenna TV's "New Year Kickoff with Coach" marathon. Starting at 5am on January 1, 2018, Antenna TV will lineup the best episodes of Coach, starring Craig T. Nelson, as college football coach Hayden Fox, leading his team at home and on the field. Special episodes include Fox and his team's appearances in the "Pineapple Bowl," "Popcorn Bowl," "Patriot Bowl" & "Pioneer Bowl." Kickoff the new year with Coach, Antenna TV's newest lineup addition. As we mentioned earlier this week, beginning January 2, 2018, Coach will air weekdays at 11pm ET and weekends at 4:30pm ET.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Tuesday, December 9

none scheduled

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of December 8)

Tuesday, December 9

Regina Hall (Black Monday/Grandfathered/Married/Second Generation Wayans) - Catch Regina on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Lily Collins (Emily in Paris) - Lily appears on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Laura Dern (F Is for Family/Enlightened) - Laura is a guest on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS. She also talks about Is This Thing On? on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
Amy Sedaris (No Activity/Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt/Strangers with Candy) - Amy appears on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Tony Rock (Living Biblically/Mann & Wife/All of Us) - Tony is a guest on Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen at 12:37am on CBS.
Matt Rogers (No Good Deed/I Love That for You) - Andy Cohen interviews Matt on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 10pm on Bravo. He also talks about Christmas in December on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
Ronny Chieng (Young Rock/Ronny Chieng: International Student) - Ronny hosts Comedy Central's The Daily Show at 11pm.
Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu (Emily in Paris) - Philippine and Emily in Paris creator and executive producer Darren Star are guests on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am and on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
Mila Kunis (Family Guy/That '70s Show) - Mila stops by for a chat about Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
Taran Killam (Stumble/Single Parents) - Taran talks about ABC's High Potential on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
Mark Hamill (The Texas Wheelers) and Tom Kenny (SpongeBob SquarePants) - Mark and Tom talk about The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
Kerry Washington (UnPrisoned) - Kery talks about Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.
Toni Collette (United States of Tara) - Toni talks about Goodbye June on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Zachary Levi (Less Than Perfect/Telenovela) - Zachary tells Sherri about his new film Not Without Hope on Sherri, so check your local listings.
Minnie Driver (Emily in Paris/Speechless/About a Boy) - Minnie plays behind-the-scenes and shares moments from her biggest projects like Good Will Hunting. Plus, she tells Drew about joining the cast of Emily in Paris on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Valerie Bertinelli (Hot in Cleveland/One Day at a Time) - Valerie, Amirah Kassem, Mikel Welch are facing off against Drew in the annual quirky Christmas tree competition on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Marlo Thomas (That Girl) - Marlo tells Drew about her amazing work with St. Jude's Children's Hospital on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.