CBS Stacks Comedies on Mondays, Thursdays

NEW YORK: CBS is expanding its comedy lineup, creating two two-hour blocks on Mondays and Thursdays.

Mondays this fall will see The Big Bang Theory kicking things off at 8 p.m., leading into the freshman family comedy Kevin Can Wait, starring Kevin James. Once Thursday Night Football wraps, The Big Bang Theory will move back to its regular Thursday time slot, and Kevin Can Wait will move up to 8 p.m. The new Matt LeBlanc comedy Man with a Plan will follow at 8:30 p.m. 2 Broke Girls returns at 9 p.m., paired with The Odd Couple at 9:30 p.m. Scorpion moves to 10 p.m. to close out the night.

NCIS returns to Tuesdays at 8 p.m., leading into a new legal drama, Bull, which features former NCIS star Michael Weatherly. NCIS: New Orleans caps off the evening at 10 p.m.

Survivor will once again open Wednesdays at 8 p.m. Criminal Minds continues in its 9 p.m. slot, leading into the medical drama Code Black.

From September 15 to October 27, NFL Thursday Night Football will be leading off the night. The Big Bang Theory will take over the 8 p.m. hour after football’s run, giving a lead-in for the freshman Joel McHale comedy The Great Indoors. The comedy Mom follows at 9 p.m. and Life in Pieces at 9:30 p.m. The evening wraps with the new medical drama Pure Genius, starring Dermot Mulroney and Augustus Prew, at 10 p.m.

Fridays begin with the new action-adventure drama MacGyver, based on the classic series, followed by another classic franchise, with Hawaii Five-0 at 9 p.m. Blue Bloods anchors the evening at 10 p.m.

Crimetime Saturday continues with encore broadcasts of the network’s most-watched dramas at 8 p.m. and 9 p.m., followed by 48 Hours at 10 p.m.

On Sundays, NCIS: Los Angeles moves to a new slot at 8 p.m., leading into Madam Secretary, which shifts to 9 p.m. Elementary holds the 10 p.m. slot.

For midseason, the network has unveiled the feature film-based Training Day, starring Bill Paxton, and the legal drama Doubt, starring Katherine Heigl. Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders will return, along with The Amazing Race and Undercover Boss. Joining the schedule is the new one-hour alternative series Hunted.

“One of our goals this development season was to expand our lineup of top-rated comedies, and these new shows and big stars give us the opportunity to do so in a big way,” said Glenn Geller, the president of CBS Entertainment. “With the network’s returning roster of hits and time-period winners, we’re able to strategically schedule all of our exciting new comedies and dramas with the best possible launch pads to succeed.”