ABC at TCA: Executive Session Live-Blog

ABC boss Paul Lee is about to talk with reporters during his Television Critics Association session, and we’ll be live-blogging what goes on. Make sure to follow along for all the latest updates…

10:25 AM: Paul Lee starts off by accidentally calling SHIELD SCANDAL. Whoops?

10:26 AM: “We were thrilled to make Friday night a destination,” Lee says of the comedies and SHARK TANK. There will be a SHARK TANK week starting September 8th.

10:28 AM: “We just fell in love with it,” Lee says of the decision to make OUATiW a fall series. He calls Alice “truly kick ass” and he wanted to go there for the fall, versus holding it off for midseason.

10:29 AM: “All of our showrunners are competitive and it’s great,” Lee says of whether the NASHVILLE showrunners were given notes to follow more of SCANDAL’s path. He thinks the show started to find its footing by the end of the season, and now Connie Britton will be given more of a meaty role in season 2.

10:32 AM: “We really wanted to focus and eventize DANCING WITH THE STARS,” Lee says of compacting the series. He also felt that SHIELD and GOLDBERGS were so strong that they could use them to open up another night.

10:33 AM: Lee allows that REVENGE season 2 stumbled a little bit, but Lee is confident about season 3 being off to a good start.

10:36 AM: “I think we are loving this relationship,” Lee says of Marvel’s relationship with ABC. He calls it “something we’re ambitious to build.”

10:37 AM: SHARK TANK week will be fan favorite repeats.

10:38 AM: How patient are they going to be with BETRAYAL? Lee says it’s going to be a 13-episode season, it’ll be marketed with REVENGE, and there’s a slow-build with BETRAYAL.

10:39 AM: Lee declines to speak about the CBS/Time Warner dispute.

10:40 AM: Lee says that when he was at a wake in Europe, he was shocked by how many people were coming up to him to talk about American television shows. However, he says it isn’t wise to construct a show that’s intended to sell well internationally, versus letting it happen naturally.

10:43 AM: “We do extremely well with family shows,” Lee says of placing TROPHY WIFE with THE GOLDBERGS on Tuesday. They wanted SUPER FUN NIGHT to get the MODERN FAMILY timeslot.

10:45 AM: Lee says that he would like to see GREY’S ANATOMY on the schedule for many years to come, but who will be around for the show is TBD. (He’s afraid of incurring the wrath of Shonda Rhimes.)

10:46 AM: Lee reiterates that Rebel Wilson chose to play American for SUPER FUN NIGHT. He praises her talent.

10:47 AM: “We have a little inkling in our mind for where that show” will go, Lee says of SUBURGATORY. He says the third season will include more of a return to the “fish out of water” element the series had earlier in the run.

10:48 AM: On the HAPPY ENDINGS cancellation, Lee says that while the show did well post-MODERN FAMILY, it couldn’t survive anywhere else, which is what led to its ultimate cancellation.

10:50 AM: “I would love to go there, I’m a particular fan of LucasFilm[‘s work],” Lee says of possibly tapping into the LucasFilm catalog for a television show.