One of the biggest surprises of this upfront season was the renewal of FOX’s under-performing Dollhouse. While the show creator Joss Whedon have a cult following, that hasn’t translated to big ratings. In fact, the Eliza Dushku and company are frequently thrashed by shows like Flashpoint, Dateline, and Supernanny. Why is FOX sticking with it?
When asked about the Dollhouse decision, FOX’s President of Entertainment, Kevin Reilly, said the network is actively looking at numbers beyond the traditional Neilson ratings.
He said, “First, it’s a bet on creatively, and that’s something that has never changed. And I’m happy to say we’re doing that. You know how inspired Joss Whedon is. It’s a bet on Joss. The DVR numbers are a marker for us, so it is a factor, and we did see an uptick in the ratings from a 1.5 to a 2. That was a pattern for us that we liked, betting on Joss, and I think you’re going to see it grow next season.”
Reilly also maintains that he was more comfortable trying to grow Dollhouse’s audience, rather than start from scratch. “Bet on something that has a core that you believe can work,” he said. He also joked, “Not to mention if we’d canceled Joss’ show I’d probably have 110 million e-mails this morning from the fans.”
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While Dollhouse has survived to see year two, fans shouldn’t count on a third season if viewership doesn’t improve.
Peter Rice, FOX’s Chairman of Entertainment, noted, “We think that we can grow the show… The show became much stronger creatively during the course of the season. Joss feels very energized about it. And we believe in him as a creator. We’ve had a lot of success in the past, and we feel that he can build the show, and it can grow in the new season… and that Friday is a good place for it to do that.”
Do you agree with FOX’s strategy, to keep Dollhouse on Friday nights? Or, was that the show’s biggest challenge this season? Is this series being set up to be cancelled?
Image courtesy FOX.
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22 Comments on "Dollhouse: Why Was the Low-Rated Eliza Dushku Series Saved?"
Dollhouse his fantastic, other than that other bullshit Fox has (Family Guy’s not funny any more for like the past 3 seasons, and now the cleveland show,new simpsons,etc)… Dollhouse is the only show fox did right, and if they **** up and cancel it like firefly >_<
I LOVE THIS SHOW!!! It is one of the most creative shows EVER! It would be great if it gets moved to some other day.
Why does it matter what night it airs? Catch it online on hulu.com, any night that works for you.
I am happy they renewed the show. It has potential for sure. I hope Fox counts online views as well as dvr. I watch all my tv online on hulu, including dollhouse. With online they time or day they show the show no longer matters as much.
I SAY TRU CALLING SHOULDN’T HAVE BEEN CANCELLED!!
this isn’t a very good show they shouldve axed this show. Sure we all wanted to say sorry to Joss for firefly but this show is crap
Thank you for looking beyond the Neilson ratings and looking at the DVR recordings because that is how I am able to watch all of the T.V. shows ,because I am a mother of four and I love this show if it wasn’t for the DVR I would not be able to watch them.
This show is definitely the nadir of Whedon’s career – a series about amnesiac prostitutes? Yeah, that’s hot, edgy and “feminist.” I have no idea why Fox renewed this show, other than they don’t have anything comparable (ie, “MILF Island”) on their roster for next season. This proves that Whedon has scraped the bottom of his creative barrel, something totally depressing when it comes from the creator of Buffy.
Love Dollhouse! I am so ******* happy that they have kept it on! God I probably won’t stop smiling all day today! Okay but FOX made a stupid move putting it on a Friday and the shows that were supposed to help with ratings did not help at all. Actually the ratings got higher when Dollhouse went on then it did when Prison Break was on.
I’m so glad this got renewed! I do, however, believe that putting ANY show aimed at people between the ages of 17 and 40 on in a Friday night time slot is a recipe for cancellation. I’m happy Fox considered DVR numbers in the decision, but I do think this show would fair better on another night, when more people might catch it and get hooked in.
If only ABC had felt this way about Pushing Daisies or Eli Stone….both had huge followings not represented by the rickety old Nielsens. Glad that DH will get one more season…..honestly, if you go back and look at it, Buffy Season One is pretty lame compared to what followed. Shows need time to get their sea legs.