ABC's fall line-up is chocked full of exciting shows. There are returning gems that fans are excited to see new seasons of, plus new shows, like The Rookie: North, a spin-off of The Rookie that is coming soon. The Wonderful World of Disney will air Sunday nights, highlighting a different iconic Disney movie that you can watch with the family each week. Meanwhile, between the comedies, dramas, and reality competition shows, there are sports like Monday Night Football and game shows like Celebrity Jeopardy and Celebrity Wheel of Fortune.
No matter what you're in the mood to watch or what day of the week you want to curl up on the couch to escape from life for an hour or two, the network has you covered. Sure, you might spend most of your time binge-watching new shows on streamers like Disney+, which also offers ABC shows. But if you want something to watch week-to-week, the ABC fall schedule, noted in Eastern Standard Time (ET), is jam-packed with options.
'America's Funniest Home Videos' Season 37 (1989–Present)
Sundays, 7:00 p.m.
Alfonso Ribeiro on stage pointing to something as audience members look on in America's Funniest Home Videos.
Can you believe that America's Funniest Home Videos has been airing for almost four decades? First hosted by the late Bob Saget, followed by John Fugelsang and Daisy Fuentes, then Tom Bergeron, Alfonso Ribeiro has been at the helm for the last decade. The show, which many call the original YouTube, highlights video shorts, candid clips that viewers submit from their own home videos. They're often grainy, old footage shot on ancient video cameras, though newer footage is included nowadays as well.
It's like a curated version of TikTok as Ribeiro walks viewers and a live audience through a series of home videos that fit into various themes, from funny pet videos to babies caught doing adorable things and, of course, epic falls and wipe outs. It's a testament to how great America's Funniest Home Videos is that it continues to exist on network television during this day and age of social media, YouTube, TikTok, and Reels. Viewers love the throwback aspect and the framing and presentation in televised format instead of endless, mindless scrolling on a mobile device.
'Dancing with the Stars' Season 35 (2005–Present)
Tuesdays, 8:00 p.m.
Elaine Hendrix and Alan Bersten on 'Dancing With the Stars' Season 34.
Dancing with the Stars moved exclusively to Disney+ for a short period, but the reality competition show has since switched back to both airing on ABC and streaming on Disney+. The long-running show pairs celebrities and other public personalities with professional dancers. They learn grueling routines then perform in front of the judges and a live audience for feedback and scoring.
While the show is fun with themed nights through its best episodes, along with exciting costumes, elaborate make-up, and hilarious banter, it's also feel-good and emotional. Many of the personalities participating have either been out of the public eye for some time or faced personal and/or professional struggles. Seeing them work hard to overcome public perception and prove something to themselves is as inspiring as it is entertaining.
'R.J. Decker' Season 2 (2026–Present)
Tuesdays, 10:00 p.m.
R.J. Decker talking to a woman on a patio in 'R.J. Decker'
This new crime drama has quickly joined others of its kind from the network, like Will Trent and High Potential (don't worry, both those shows are coming back in early 2027). R.J. Decker is a procedural with its own angle. Scott Speedman stars as the titular character, a newspaper photographer and ex-con who, after being disgraced and serving time, returns to society and decides to work as a private investigator. Together with a few people from his past and a shady benefactor, they try to solve local crimes.
With a sunny backdrop of South Florida, you get Dexter, Miami Vice, and CSI: Miami vibes through this series. Decker wants to do things right this time around and redeem himself. But the 18 months he spent in jail could easily become more if he doesn't play his cards right. R.J. Decker is a fun and light show with just nine episodes in Season 1, making it easy to catch up before the new season premieres.
'Scrubs' Season 11 (2026–Present)
Wednesdays, 8:00 p.m.
Returning more than 15 years after it originally ended, Scrubs came back with a bang in 2026 for its 10th season. It was a roaring success and the second of the new venture (11th season overall) is coming this fall. The medical sitcom is set in a teaching hospital where a quirky ensemble of characters interacts with one another and patients. In the revival, most of the cast members reprise their roles from the original, internal narration now following several characters and not just J.D. (Zach Braff).
Since so much time has passed, the revival focuses on a new group of medical students, the veteran cast serving as mentors for the next generation. But of course, their enduring friendship, including the one between J.D. and Christopher Turk (Donald Faison), two sitcom characters who were never supposed to last this long, is the heart of the show and its humor. The show also tackles current topics, including social media and the modern healthcare system, making it relevant for the times.
'Abbott Elementary' Season 6 (2021–Present)
Wednesdays, 8:30 p.m.
Quinta Brunson as Janine and Tyler James Williams as Gregory in the school hallway in Abbott Elementary.
A love letter to public school teachers, Abbott Elementary is a mockumentary sitcom that will have you laughing through its best episodes. But you'll also feel appreciation for the public education system, especially in underfunded districts. The story centers around the staff at a predominantly Black public school in Philadelphia, including passionate but frustrated teachers and the laissez-faire, self-obsessed principal (Janelle James).
With five seasons under its belt, Abbott Elementary has earned 30 Emmy nominations throughout its run to date and won four. A refreshing comedy you can watch with the whole family, it will give you a greater appreciation for teachers and the challenges they face that make it a difficult profession for even the best of them.
'Shark Tank' Season 18 (2009–Present)
Wednesdays, 10:00 p.m.
Kevin O'Leary in Shark Tank
A reality show with purpose, Shark Tank features Americans with big dreams, ideas, and businesses. They appear in front of a panel of "sharks," investors and venture capitalists, who hear their pitches and decide if they want to invest or not. If it's a really good business with potential, there might be multiple offers, putting the entrepreneur in the driver's seat. If it's not, at least the entrepreneur will get advice from this panel of experts.
The show features real investments in real businesses, alongside conversations that teach even viewers about business terms like EBITDA and cost of customer acquisition. Shark Tank can also get pretty emotional when you hear stories from entrepreneurs looking to realize the American Dream. Every episode features multiple pitches and conversations that can go from encouraging to harsh reality checks.
'9-1-1' Season 10 (2018–Present)
Thursdays, 8:00 p.m.
Four uniformed cops walk together toward an incident on 9-1-1.
In the mood for a police procedural? 9-1-1 hails from Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk and moved to ABC from Fox for its seventh season onwards. First responders in Los Angeles are the center of the plot that follows three perspectives: the fire department, police department, and 911 dispatchers, and how they all intertwine when a case comes in.
The packed cast led by Angela Bassett also includes Kenneth Choi, Connie Britton, and Jennifer Love Hewitt. If you love traditional procedurals with a sprinkling of campy, soapy melodrama, 9-1-1 is a perfect fit.
'9-1-1: Nashville' Season 2 (2025–Present)
Thursdays, 9:00 p.m.
Chris O'Donnell in '9-1-1: Nashville'
Can't get enough of 9-1-1? You can keep the adrenaline going with back-to-back shows by watching the third series in this growing franchise. 9-1-1: Nashville is similar to 9-1-1 in that it follows first responders and 911 dispatchers. But this time, it's in the city of Nashville. Naturally, there are some differences given the setting that switches to the southeastern U.S. from the west coast in the original show.
This is perfectly captured by the fact that, along with being a veteran firefighter, the lead character, Captain Donald "Don" Hart (Chris O'Donnell), is also a rodeo rider. You'll also find singers, cowboys, and strippers among the secondary jobs. The series has some other familiar names among its cast, too, including singer LeAnn Rimes and, joining in Season 2, Ryan Philippe. The show has also seen a long list of guest stars, including Kristin Cavallari, Kyle Richards, and Noah Cyrus.
'Grey's Anatomy' Season 23 (2005–Present)
Thursdays, 10:00 p.m.
Kim Raver and Harry Shum Jr. in Grey's Anatomy.
We're sort of at the point where some are surprised that Grey's Anatomy is even still on the air. But the medical drama is still going strong after 20 years and even more seasons. The soapy show follows the personal and professional lives of doctors, residents, and patients in a fictional Seattle hospital with both unique and many recurring plotlines.
The Shonda Rhimes show has been through many ups and downs throughout its run, starring everyone from Ellen Pompeo, one of the few remaining original actors, along with Sandra Oh, Patrick Dempsey, and the late Eric Dane. As ABC's longest-running scripted primetime show, Grey's Anatomy is like that comforting cup of cocoa you know is waiting for you at home. Every Thursday evening (or later if you DVR), you can curl up with the predictably dramatic, intense, and emotional storylines.
'20/20' Season 49 (1978–Present)
Fridays, 9:00 p.m.
David Muir and Deborah Roberts from 20/20
As ABC's answer to 60 Minutes, 20/20 launched way back in the late '70s and has been a mainstay in the primetime line-up ever since. The news magazine show started by focusing on human interest stories and investigative journalism but has since shifted to be more like Dateline and 48 Hours, featuring true crime and celebrity scandal stories. That said, there's still the odd special edition episode when a current event warrants it.
Bottom line: it's the perfect Friday night show to relax with and learn about a puzzling cold case, a horrifying murder, or the latest political, social, or celebrity scandal that everyone is talking about. Led by David Muir and Deborah Roberts in its current iteration, 20/20 is that show that long-time fans have been watching for almost 50 years and the new generation find themselves curious about when a theme fits or the desire for true crime strikes.
20 Years Later, 'Grey's Anatomy' Needs To Stop Expanding
Once upon a time, the newest addition to the Grey's Anatomy roster felt like a special occasion, and there were various reasons for this, particularly the fact that someone could potentially die in increasingly ridiculous ways. But one of the biggest reasons was how well the show conveyed who the main characters were as individuals compared to virtually all other shows on network television.
Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo), Cristina Yang (Sandra Oh), Alex Karev (Justin Chambers), Izzie Stevens (Katherine Heigl), and George O'Malley (T.R. Knight) built a strong connection with audiences throughout the first several seasons of the show. While all the medical calamities were very entertaining, they were ultimately worth watching only because they affected the lives of the central characters. As a result, when looking forward to ABC's Grey's Anatomy spin-off, it doesn't feel as exciting as it probably should.
The untitled series, co-created by Shonda Rhimes and current Grey’s showrunner Meg Marinis, will move the franchise to rural West Texas for the first time. Instead of centering on an established Grey’s character like Private Practice did with Addison Montgomery (Kate Walsh) or Station 19 did with Ben Warren (Jason George), this series will reportedly focus on an entirely new group of doctors.
‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Already Feels Like a Different Show Than the One Fans Fell in Love With
Katherine Heigl, TR Knight, and Sandra Oh in an episode of Grey's Anatomy
Grey’s Anatomy has survived longer than almost anyone expected. It can be quite hard for a network drama to last upwards of 20 seasons, especially when it’s based on a rotating cast. Nonetheless, the amount of time a show has been on air and its continuing imaginative flow differ vastly. The original magic of the show stemmed from the comedic representation of dysfunctional, yet loving relationships and genuine emotional stories. Longtime fans of the show think that, as a whole, it has changed since it first began airing. The medical cases mattered more, but they also played a part in these characters' lives. The show struck a balance between that and never losing sight of the interns trying to survive impossible hours while ruining each other’s lives in on-call rooms.
Nowadays, it just seems like Grey's is trying to redo all of that. The show still knows how to manufacture cliffhangers, complete with explosions, hostage situations, near-death experiences, and surprise pregnancies, but there’s a growing sense that the series is repeating emotional beats instead of building toward anything meaningful. That’s part of why so many fans point to earlier seasons as the show’s natural endpoint. Some argue that Season 10 would have been the right place to stop after Cristina’s departure, while others think the COVID-focused Season 17 could have worked as a surprisingly poignant conclusion. There are even viewers who believe Season 14’s wedding-centered finale, “All of Me,” gave several core characters the closest thing the series has ever had to a satisfying ending. Instead, Grey’s kept going. And now, years after Pompeo stepped back from being the show’s full-time lead, ABC is preparing to expand the universe even further.
‘Private Practice’ Worked Because It Had a Reason To Exist
The cast of Private Practice in a promotional image.
Private Practice made sense because Addison was one of the franchise’s most beloved characters. The show also had a clear identity separate from Grey’s Anatomy. It traded Seattle’s chaotic surgical energy for a more intimate, slower-paced character drama in Los Angeles. Whether viewers loved it or not, it justified its existence almost immediately. On the other hand, Station 19 had a harder time carving out its own personality, but at least it still felt connected to the larger Grey’s world through familiar characters and frequent crossovers.
This new series doesn’t have either of those components just yet — news did just break, but where will the connections come from? Right now, the pitch mostly sounds like “Grey’s, but make it Texas.” That may change once casting details and storylines emerge, but it was the first impression fans got. A franchise can only expand so many times before audiences start noticing the machinery behind it.
ABC is turning nearly all of its biggest scripted dramas into franchises. 9-1-1 now has Nashville, The Rookie is getting The Rookie: North. One of the only ones missing is Grey's. Network television has become obsessed with expandable universes because recognizable IP is safer than launching something original from scratch. Viewers and advertisers know the name, and the network already knows there’s a built-in audience, but television history is full of franchises that kept growing long after the creative spark faded.
The Bigger Problem Is What the Spinoff Says About ‘Grey’s Anatomy’
Dylan Young (Kyle Chandler) carefully guiding Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo) through removing a bomb in Grey's Anatomy.
What makes the timing of this announcement especially strange is that Grey’s Anatomy itself is reportedly receiving reduced episode orders for budget reasons, so while the flagship series gets smaller, the franchise keeps getting bigger. ABC clearly still sees enormous value in Grey’s Anatomy as a brand. The ratings remain solid, and the streaming numbers are strong because viewers have been tuning in to the show for numerous reasons over the course of 20 years, including as a habit, out of loyalty or nostalgia, or through an emotional connection with the show's veteran characters.
However, a show can continue to survive, sometimes for a very long time, but not necessarily have a chance to evolve. The medical drama genre has taken on a whole new approach since Grey's Anatomy began airing in 2005. The success of HBO Max's The Pitt, among others, relies heavily on the relatable realism and the emotional exhaustion that many viewers experience after watching Grey's, as well as Grey's original "glossy" style appearing more and more like an extreme version of reality TV, while maintaining some of its original elements (which was a huge part of the show's original appeal).
Yet it is hard to ignore that we, as viewers, currently see Grey's generating momentum towards a franchise rather than creative urgency. This does not indicate that the new spin-off will undoubtedly be a failure; after 20 years, Grey's has proven its critics wrong. Texas could bring a refreshing change of pace to the series. Perhaps a new group of doctors will strike a similar chord with viewers, just as they once did with Meredith and Cristina or George and Izzie.
It would just be nice if Grey's Anatomy just ended as we know it and aired reruns of Seasons 1-10. So many people would be here for that.
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