Fox to split development cycle

Fox has announced it will hold a pilot screening event this December, dividing its series development cycle in two.

Kevin Reilly, the network's entertainment president, said at least eight shows would be showcased at the screenings, with two likely to be given early series orders. The changes were "the next step towards year-round" development, he said. Traditionally, annual screenings of new projects are held in the spring.

"We are formally splitting our development season in two," Reilly told reporters this week. "Where we would normally have a May pilot screening, we've recently set a December pilot screening in which we will screen half of our slate."

Dramas in the pipeline this year include Lie To Me, Courtroom K and Virtuality.

Reilly also acknowledged Fox's comedy lineup had been "a little anaemic" in recent years and revealed executives are now taking a different approach to commissioning as a possible solution.

"We're not going to take most of our comedy pitches in our office," he said. "We're going to go out and meet the writers on their own turf, and that could be at a restaurant, their house, anything that gets it out of a sterile environment."