According to The Hollywood Reporter, FOX animated comedies Family Guy and Bob’s Burgers have been renewed for the 18th and 10th production cycles, respectively.
Deals for these latest renewals are purported to have closed months ago due to the extensive process that it takes to produce animated television. Both shows have been solid performers in Live + Same Day this season, Family Guy down 9% with a rare animated lead-in and Bob’s Burgers up 9% regularly airing away from 7:30, and continue to print money in off-network SVOD and syndication deals. Additionally, Bob’s Burgers was just nominated for its seventh consecutive Outstanding Animated Program Emmy (winning in 2014 and 2017) and will field a feature film in 2020.
The lone problem for FOX’s animated shows is that the studio that produces them (20th Century Fox) and the FOX broadcast network won’t be connected anymore following the impending Disney merger, so all of the money they generate through streaming and syndication won’t be going to the network that airs them. Granted, they’ve been successful enough that Disney will likely do what they can in order to keep them going, but the merger does make them look just a bit more mortal.
Family Guy and Bob’s Burgers join an animated slate for FOX that includes The Simpsons, already renewed for its 31st and 32nd seasons, and series orders Bless the Harts and Duncanville. The latter two will likely make their series premieres during the upcoming 2019-20 season.
Family Guy airs Sundays at 9:00 on FOX, with Bob’s Burgers at 8:30.
