ABC Hasn't Ruled Out Bringing Disney+ Content to Primetime

With the ongoing writers' strike, networks are planning for the possibility of there not being episodes of any scripted TV shows ready for the fall season. While most networks announced their usual schedules, knowing things could change, ABC went ahead and announced a schedule void of scripted TV. Everything ABC has planned for the fall is of the unscripted variety, save for reruns of Abbott Elementary's first two seasons on Wednesday nights. It appears the network is also considering some help from Disney+.

The idea has come up for ABC to potentially use Disney+ original TV shows as part of its primetime programming, helping keep ratings afloat while the Writers Guild of America members are still on strike. Disney+ shows like WandaVision, Star Wars: The Mandalorian, and others have only aired on the Disney streaming service. If there's a lack of TV ready later this year, they could potentially make their broadcast debuts.

Ari Goldman, Senior VP Content Strategy & Scheduling for ABC Entertainment, recently appeared on The Hollywood Reporter's TV's Top 5 podcast, and addressed the possibility of using other Disney properties to fill out the ABC schedule.

"Certainly, we had conversations — and we'll continue to have conversations about that Disney portfolio," the executive explained.

The biggest difficulty a move like this would face is getting the Disney+ shows adjusted for a broadcast schedule. With streaming, there aren't strict rules about time and episode structure. None of Disney's streaming titles were made with network television in mind, so it would take some adjustments to make things work.

"From a scheduling standpoint, there are things we have to work through, [including] the formates of these shows that are not designed for broadcast," Goldman said. "We have a certain duration we have to fid and accommodate our ad load."

A typical episode of a half-hour sitcom runs about 22 minutes, with the other eight minutes saved for ads. An hour-long sitcom runs for about 42 minutes. Times for shows like The Mandalorian, WandaVision, and Loki are all over the map, so there would need to be a lot of adjusting to make them work for broadcast television.

Do you think we'll see Disney+ shows on ABC this fall? Let us know in the comments!