FX Locks Summer Launch Date for Comedies

FX LOCKS SUMMER LAUNCH DATE FOR COMEDY SERIES

Thursday, June 28th

Series Debut of Anger Management Starring Charlie Sheen at 9:00 PM E/P

Season 2 of Acclaimed Hit Series Wilfred Starring Elijah Wood and Jason Gann at 10:00 PM E/P
Academy Award® Winner Robin Williams to Guest Star in Season Opener

Season 3 of Award-Winning Louie Starring Louis C.K. at 10:30 PM E/P

Series Premiere of Strangely Uplifting with Russell Brand at 11:00 PM E/P


LOS ANGELES, February 28, 2012 – FX will be television’s comedy destination this summer with the return of two of its acclaimed original series, Louie and Wilfred, the debut of its new late-night original series Strangely Uplifting with Russell Brand, and Anger Management starring Charlie Sheen, all airing Thursday nights beginning June 28.

The series premiere of FX’s acquired comedy Anger Management starring Charlie Sheen kicks off June 28 with the first two episodes airing at 9:00 PM and 9:30 PM E/P. In the following weeks, the series will air first-run episodes Thursdays at 9:30 PM with the previous week’s episode repeated at 9:00 PM. FX has ordered 10 episodes of Anger Management from producers Debmar-Mercury and Lionsgate Television. In Anger Management, Sheen stars as “Charlie,” a non-traditional therapist specializing in anger management. Selma Blair, Shawnee Smith, Daniela Bobadilla, Michael Arden, and Noureen DeWulf co-star. He has a successful private practice, holding sessions with his group of primary patients each week, as well as performing pro bono counseling for an inmate group at a state prison. Prior to his career as a therapist, Charlie was a stalled minor league baseball prospect whose road to the majors was sidetracked by his own struggle with anger issues. After a stint in anger management therapy, he made it to the majors and had one terrific season before his anger issues put him on the shelf for good. In the final game of his career, he tried to snap a bat over his leg, which resulted in a career-ending injury. That injury led him back to school and to his current profession. Charlie thrives on the chaos in his life while still battling his own anger issues. His life is complicated by his relationships with his own therapist/best friend, an ex-wife whose positive outlook but poor choice in men frustrates Charlie, and their 13-year-old daughter who has obsessive-compulsive disorder. Bruce Helford serves as Executive Producer/Showrunner. Joe Roth, Mark Burg, Dave Caplan are Executive Producers.

Season two of the acclaimed hit comedy Wilfred starring Elijah Wood and Jason Gann debuts at 10:00 PM E/P. Academy Award-winning actor/comedian Robin Williams has signed on for a guest-starring role in the season opener. Wilfred is about a young man, "Ryan" (Wood), struggling unsuccessfully to make his way in the world until he forms a unique friendship with "Wilfred" (Gann), his neighbor’s pet dog. Everyone else sees Wilfred as just a dog, but Ryan sees a crude and somewhat surly, yet irrepressibly brave and honest Australian bloke in a cheap dog suit. Series regulars also include Fiona Gubelmann as “Jenna,” Ryan’s beautiful neighbor and Wilfred’s owner, and Dorian Brown as “Kristen,” Ryan’s uptight sister. FX has ordered 13 episodes for season two. Wilfred’s debut season ranks as FX’s most-watched freshman comedy in the network’s history among Total Viewers (2.22 million), Adults 18-49 (1.56 million), and Adults 18-34 (932,000). On a multi-run total basis, Wilfred averaged 3.8 million Total Viewers and 2.66 million in Adults18-49. Wilfred is based on the critically acclaimed Australian series of the same title. It was adapted for FX by David Zuckerman, who also serves as Executive Producer alongside Gann, Rich Frank, Paul Frank and Jeff Kwatinetz of Prospect Park, and Joe Connor and Ken Connor of Renegade. Wilfred is produced by FX Productions.

Season three of the acclaimed and award-winning comedy series Louie, starring actor/comedian Louis C.K., premieres at 10:30 PM E/P. FX has ordered 13 episodes of the series for season three. The critically acclaimed FX original comedy series Louie is filtered through the observational humor of Emmy® Award-winning comedian Louis C.K. From the inventive imagination of Louis C.K., Louie puts a spotlight on C.K.’s everyday ordeals, his quest to find love and his pursuit of humor. Each episode features a scripted story and a mix of his stand-up comedy, which is original material for the series. The single-camera comedy is shot in New York. TIME magazine called Louie the best show on television in 2011. In its second season, the series was honored with an AFI Award as one of the 10 Most Outstanding Television Shows of 2011; received Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series and Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series; Television Critics Association Award nominations for Outstanding Achievement in Comedy and Individual Achievement in Comedy and numerous other accolades. Louie’s sophomore season was stronger than ever, posting significant growth over its first season across the board: +36% in Adults 18-49 (1.07 million vs. 781,000), +41% in Adults 18-34 (669,000 vs. 476,000) and +29% in Total Viewers (1.43 vs. 1.11 million). On a multi-run total basis, Louie’s second season averaged 2.61 million Total Viewers and 1.9 million Adults 18-49. Louis C.K. serves as executive producer, writer, director and editor for the series, and M. Blair Breard, Dave Becky and 3 Arts Entertainment are executive producers. The series is produced by FX Productions.

Finally, the series premiere of Strangely Uplifting, FX’s new late-night comedy starring acclaimed actor/comedian Russell Brand, will debut, at 11:00 PM E/P. The series features Brand’s unvarnished, unfiltered take on current events, politics and pop culture. The network has ordered six half-hour installments of the series that will be shot in front of a live audience. The format will draw heavily on Brand's interaction with that audience. The series is produced by FX Productions in association with Branded Films and Dakota Films. This marks the first television deal for Branded Films. Executive Producers are Russell Brand, Troy Miller and Nik Linnen. Miller also serves as Director of the series. The series was originally scheduled for the spring, but was pushed to the summer due to a film production starring Brand.

FX Productions produces the critically acclaimed hit comedy series It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, The League, Louie, Archer, Wilfred and Unsupervised and it co-produces the award-winning hit drama series Sons of Anarchy and award-winning hit drama series Justified. FXP is also producing Living Loaded, a comedy pilot for FOX co-created by Rob McElhenney and Rob Rosell, inspired by the book of the same title by Dan Dunn.

FX is the flagship general entertainment basic cable network from Fox. Launched in June of 1994, FX is carried in more than 98 million homes. The diverse schedule includes a growing roster of critically acclaimed and award-winning hit dramas series including Sons of Anarchy, Justified and American Horror Story, and acclaimed hit comedy series It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, The League, Louie, Archer and Wilfred. Its library of acquired box-office hit movies is unmatched by any ad-supported television network. The network's other offerings include the acquired hit series Two and a Half Men and How I Met Your Mother, and live sports with college football and the UFC. For more information about FX, visit our web site at www.FXnetworks.com.

Source: FX