Three New Series, Breakout Comedies, and Fan-Favorite Dramas Anchor NBC’s Fall Lineup Boosted by Live Tentpole Specials

NBC unveils its 2024 fall schedule highlighting fan-favorite franchise dramas, two nights of laughs, huge unscripted hits, and the biggest and best live specials and holiday programming.

Three new series are set to premiere in the fall: Drama “Brilliant Minds,” starring Zachary Quinto and inspired by the true story of a revolutionary, larger-than-life neurologist, Oliver Wolf, and his team of interns as they explore the last great frontier – the human mind – while also grappling with their own relationships and mental health; “St. Denis Medical,” which stars Wendi McLendon-Covey, Allison Tolman and David Alan Grier, and is from co-creators Justin Spitzer and Eric Ledgin, brings the laughs with a mockumentary about an underfunded, understaffed Oregon hospital where the dedicated doctors and nurses try their best to treat patients while maintaining their own sanity; and Reba McEntire returns to comedy with multi-camera “Happy’s Place,” in which her character inherits her father’s bar and is less than thrilled to discover that she has a new business partner in the half-sister she never knew she had.

All new series will stream next day on Peacock along with the rest of NBC’s entertainment lineup.

NBC’s 2024/25 Schedule Highlights:

Monday: #1 most-watched alternative series “The Voice” leads off premiere week for its 26th cycle @ 8PM, setting the stage for the debut of true life-inspired medical drama “Brilliant Minds,” starring Zachary Quinto, @ 10PM

Tuesday: Laughs lead off the evening with the premiere of mockumentary “St. Denis Medical” @ 8PM, followed by the return of hit comedy “Night Court” @ 8:30PM “The Voice” takes the stage @ 9PM followed by the highly anticipated second season of new hit drama “The Irrational.”

Wednesday: Television’s #1 drama franchise returns with the #OneChicago lineup kicking off @ 8PM with “Chicago Med,” continuing with “Chicago Fire” and concluding with #1 broadcast drama “Chicago P.D.”

Thursday: Network television’s top-rated Thursday starts with the flagship “Law & Order” @ 8PM followed by the record-extending 26th season of “Law & Order: SVU.” The night concludes with the return of #1 new fall drama “Found,” starring Shanola Hampton.

Friday: Reba McEntire kicks off a new comedy hour @ 8PM with the debut of “Happy’s Place,” leading into the return of fan-favorite “Lopez vs. Lopez,” followed by hit newsmagazine “Dateline NBC” from 9-11PM

Saturday: “Big Ten Saturday Night” is back in primetime as an expanded conference of storied college programs vie for dominance.

Sunday: #1 primetime television show for a record 13 consecutive years, “NBC Sunday Night Football” will broadcast 20 regular-season games throughout the NFL season.

SPECIALS / HOLIDAYS

The 2024 “People’s Choice Country Awards” will once again air live from the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville on Thursday, September 26 across NBC and Peacock.

Last year, NBC’s holiday programming reached more than 100 million people across the NBCU portfolio on the strength of an unrivaled lineup of dynamic live events, specials and beloved holiday classics. The festivities continue this season, highlighted by “Defying Gravity: The Curtain Rises on Wicked,” a special behind-the-scenes celebration of Universal Pictures’ upcoming feature film, led by superstars Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, and the all-star cast of “Wicked” on November 25.

For the second year in a row, NBC comes to the Opry, now featuring a new master of ceremonies with “Little Big Town’s Christmas at the Opry,” a festive two-hour music special from the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville. Join country music superstar group Little Big Town and friends for the holiday celebration of the year featuring performances and surprise special guests at the world-famous stage.

These lineup additions join annual favorites “Christmas in Rockefeller Center,” with returning host Kelly Clarkson, “The National Dog Show” and “Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade,” which reached a record-setting 40 million viewers as the #1 entertainment telecast of 2023. NBC will also return to Miami for an epic New Year’s Eve celebration.

MIDSEASON

The network’s highly anticipated, 10-part tentpole event series “The Americas” arrives on February 23 with a special two-hour premiere. Narrated by actor, producer, and writer Tom Hanks with music by two-time Oscar winner Hans Zimmer, the natural history series is five years in the making and filled with extraordinary new discoveries. It marks the first time North America and South America, home to the largest variety of life on the planet, are at the center of a wildlife documentary series. The series features many iconic locations in the United States, which viewers and their families will instantly recognize, but experience like they’ve never seen before.

Also arriving in 2025 are two new pulse-pounding shows: reality competition series “Destination X,” which combines a spectacular adventure with immersive gameplay and the ultimate guessing game, and procedural drama “The Hunting Party” starring Melissa Roxburgh (“Manifest”), which will see a team of investigators attempt to capture the country’s most dangerous killers. “Deal or No Deal Island” returns a new set of contestants to the Banker’s private island for season two.

“Saturday Night Live” will mark its milestone 50th anniversary with a celebratory weekend culminating in a live primetime special on Sunday, February 16 from 8-11PM ET.