ABC at TCA: Executive Session Live-Blog

ABC is up first for the broadcast networks, and Paul Lee, President of the ABC Entertainment Group is here to talk to press.

Follow along for a live-blog of what Lee has to say…

10:47 AM:  We’re getting an ABC sizzle reel — lots of ONCE UPON A TIME, SCANDAL, BLACK-ISH, and MODERN FAMILY.

10:51 AM: Lee is boasting about TGIT — the block did an amazing job socially, as well as in the ratings. “I think Viola Davis should win that Emmy,” Lee praises.

10:52 AM: “Incredibly specific voices can be incredibly universal,” Lee says of FRESH OFF THE BOAT and BLACK-ISH’s success.

10:53 AM: “BLOOD AND OIL, Don Johnson is back — that show is great,” Lee says. He also praises QUANTICO, and thinks the whole world will be talking about Priyanka Chopra. He also

10:55 AM: “It was great wasn’t it?” Lee says. “It was great to see GREY’S ANATOMY so relevant…it was a difficult decision…Shonda decided that was the way. We’ve seen the pitch for next season, and it reinvents itself again.” Lee thinks the show will continue on for years.

10:57 AM: “He’s having a party on Sunday nights,” Lee says of how great Steve Harvey did on CELEBRITY FAMILY FEUD. He expects the show to continue on, but it hasn’t officially been renewed.

11:00 AM: “The truth is, it has to be integral to the show,” Lee says of the corporate synergy the network does.

11:01 AM: OF KINGS AND PROPHETS is an “incredibly ambitious show”…they’re “taking big swings with [the show]” and they want to get it right.

11:02 AM: Lee praises Felicity Huffman on AMERICAN CRIME as “one of the most complicated, nuanced” performances. But, yes, many of the season 1 actors will be returning for season 2.

11:03 AM: “We’re always casting the people we think are right,” Lee says when it’s noted he has a lot of GOSSIP GIRL people on his upcoming lineup.

11:04 AM: “Our studio makes the shows we do for Netflix — we’re very thrilled with that,” Lee says of the Marvel shows. AGENT CARTER season 2 will be set in Hollywood, and Peggy will be able to “enjoy herself.”

We’ll also be seeing more characters with superpowers in SHIELD next season.

11:06 AM: “DR. KEN is very much [Ken’s] vision,” Lee says. It’s supposed to be a great partner with LAST MAN STANDING.

11:07 AM: “We’d love to get more publicity for [LAST MAN STANDING]…it’s really well done,” Lee says. He points out the network is always #1 on Friday nights, partially thanks to that.

11:09 AM: “Our brand is driven through innovation and character,” Lee says. They need to build a structure around strong voices, he says. He wants people to bring them their personal stories. He says they go around the world, to different festivals, etc., to find new talent. He points to Pete Nowalk on HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER, who was so passionate about the story that in many ways he and Shonda Rhimes got out of his way and let him do what he needed to do.

11:13 AM: “I haven’t been thinking all my life that it was my job to get the Muppets on [ABC],” Lee says. “That being said, as a kid, I loved them.” He loves the mockumentary format gives them something they haven’t done with the franchise yet.

11:15 AM: “We do reach a huge amount of people,” Lee points out. HTGAWM is something that performs well on multiple platforms. He says the overnight ratings are a little bit difficult, because we’ve seen how the ratings go up so much after later viewings. He points to AMERICAN CRIME as a show that might not have worked on the network a few years ago, due to its ratings, but it works now.

11:20 AM: Lee says there has been a huge amount of change in the kinds of shows they’ve been able to put on the network in the past five years.

11:21 AM: ABC has no plans to make multiple episodes available at a time right now.

11:22 AM: “We don’t have anything to announce about ROOKIE BLUE,” Lee says.

11:23 AM: “The show is a fascinating Bonnie and Clyde story,” Lee says of WICKED CITY. He says you’re drawn for them, and you root for them, even when you don’t root to them. He says the heart of the relationship is very ABC.

11:24 AM: “This is very much a folie a deux…it’s based on a set of real stories,” Lee says of WICKED CITY. They’re very proud of it. It tested well with Millennials.