CHICAGO (thefutoncritic.com) -- FOX continues to inch closer to a year-round schedule as the network unveiled its preliminary summer plans this morning. Among its massive slate: four new reality series, a scripted drama and several movie premieres.
Here's a rundown of what to expect thus far once May sweeps ends:
Friday, May 23
8:00/7:00c - "Movie: Final Destination" (World Broadcast Premiere)
Tuesday, May 27
8:00/7:00c - "American Juniors" (Two-Hour Series Premiere)
Thursdays, beginning May 29
8:00/7:00c - "Stupid Behavior Caught on Tape" (New Series)
8:30/7:30c - "30 Seconds to Fame" (New Episodes Begin)
9:00/8:00c - "The Pulse"
Friday, May 30
8:00/7:00c - "Movie: Lost and Found"
Monday, June 2
8:00/7:00c - "Movie: Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me"
Tuesdays, beginning June 3
8:00/7:00c - "American Juniors (1)" (Time Slot Premiere)
9:00/8:00c - "Keen Eddie" (New Series)
Wednesdays, beginning June 4
8:00/7:00c - "That '70s Show"
8:30/7:30c - "American Juniors (2)" (Time Slot Premiere)
9:00/8:00c - "The Bernie Mac Show"
9:30/8:30c - (To Be Announced)
Monday, June 9
8:00/7:00c - "Test the Nation" (Two-Hour Special)
Mondays, beginning June 16
8:00/7:00c - "Anything for Love (1)" (New Series)
8:30/7:30c - "Anything for Love (2)" (New Series)
9:00/8:00c - "Paradise Hotel (1)" (New Series)
Wednesdays, beginning June 18
9:00/8:00c - "Paradise Hotel (2)" (Time Slot Premiere)
Friday, June 27
8:00/7:00c - "2003 Essence Awards"
Sunday, June 29
7:00/6:00c - "Movie: True Lies"
Thursday, July 3
8:00/7:00c - "Movie: The Hurricane" (World Broadcast Premiere)
Friday, July 4
8:00/7:00c - "Movie: An American Werewolf In Paris"
Sunday, July 6
7:00/6:00c - "Movie: Independence Day"
NEW SERIES DESCRIPTIONS (culled from FOX's press releases)
AMERICAN JUNIORS (premieres May 27) - No specific details are available other than it is a spin-off of "American Idol" featuring contestants under the age of 16. None of the judges from the original is expected to be involved, nor will Ryan Seacrest host the series.
ANYTHING FOR LOVE (premieres June 16) - How far would you go for the one that you loved? Would you propose to your lover in front of thousands of people? Would you subject yourself to the ultimate rejection and ask your ex-lover to leave his fiance and return to you? What would you do if you found out your girlfriend had another boyfriend? Hosted by Mark Walberg and Claudia DiFolco, the series tries to answer all these questions in front of millions of people.
KEEN EDDIE (premieres June 3) - FOX's fast-paced, visually captivating new one-hour drama shot entirely in England, centers on a rugged and utterly American cop who is sent to London where he gets a chance to find himself, capture his lost dignity and fight crime for Scotland Yard. Scruffy and ill-mannered, but not without charm, Eddie Arlette, played by film and television actor Mark Valley ("ER," "Pasadena," "The Siege") is a down-on-his-luck New York City police detective. Dumped by his girlfriend and responsible for a drug bust gone bad, Eddie is sent to England with his rambunctious dog Pete to clean up the mess that resulted from his botched narcotics sting.
PARADISE HOTEL (premieres June 16) - This innovative and groundbreaking series follows 12 guests (six single men and six single women) who are given the opportunity of a lifetime�to live together in the most exclusive resort ever created. But paradise doesn't last forever - each week the hotel guests will vote off one of their fellow residents to make room for a new guest. Viewers at home can become the new guests of the hotel by calling a toll-free number for a chance to be a studio contestant. Contestants must win a unique studio game where the studio audience, and ultimately the guests at the hotel, will decide which contestant will be the next guest at the resort. The studio winner will literally leave immediately after the show and fly to the resort to appear on the next episode as a hotel guest, who will be pampered and spoiled beyond his/her wildest dreams at the exotic, sun-drenched location.
STUPID BEHAVIOR CAUGHT ON TAPE (premieres May 29) - Think you've seen it all? Not a chance! With people's fascination and desire to record more and more personal experiences on videotape, some of the funniest and genuinely unbelievable moments have been captured for posterity on the series. Stacy Keach narrates hilarious and frequently embarrassing footage from around the world. You'll see a first-time skydiver attempt to deploy his chute, a woman who agrees to let her boyfriend fling her from a catapult, a body builder who takes on more weight than he can handle and a reporter who delivers a "shocking" story.
To make room for its summer series, FOX will forgo airing repeats of "Boston Public," "24," "Fastlane" and "John Doe" during the period. Still to be determined however are the fates of the unaired installments of "Futurama" (8 episodes) and "Cedric the Entertainer Presents" (6 episodes) both of which had previously been scheduled to run new episodes beginning in June.
This isn't the end of FOX's plans either. Still to come: a third season of "Temptation Island," the "Green Acres" reality series "The Simple Life" and the talent competition "Second Chance."
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