‘American Idol’ To Go Head-to-Head Against ‘The Voice’ in Spring TV Lineup
American Idol and The Voice will face-off during the same Monday night time-slot when the Idol reboot debuts in March on ABC.
Former ACM co-hosts Luke Bryan and Blake Shelton will go head-to-head on primetime television this spring after ABC announced its mid-season schedule.
In a bold move, the network decided to place the American Idol revival, where Bryan will appear as a judge, in the same time-slot as NBC’s popular singing competition, The Voice, on Monday nights.
The move will likely lead to some more roasting between the longtime friends, who have already been lightly jabbing one another since Bryan signed on to the Idol reboot.
“I think people are going to realize just how dumb he really is when they see him on national television, in an environment where there’s no script,” Shelton previously joked to Entertainment Tonight. “But you’re also gonna see what a great, great, dude that guy is. I love Luke like a brother, I really do, but he’s just dumb.”
While Idol is scheduled to air Sundays and Mondays in March, an ABC press release reveals that in April, Dancing with the Stars All-Athletes Edition will take over Idol’s Monday night time-slot, presumably meaning that pre-recorded segments, like auditions and Hollywood week, will air for the first several weeks before the live shows begin.
In keeping with this theory, in November, returning host Ryan Seacrest revealed the show’s premiere date, adding that he’d be keeping his job at Live with Kelly and Ryan in New York during while Idol films in Los Angeles on the weekend.
“All I have to say is considering I work in New York Monday through Friday, thank God it’s on Sunday night in Los Angeles,” said Seacrest with a laugh.
NBC will launch season 14 of The Voice straight after its Winter Olympics coverage on February 26. ABC’s American Idol will follow suit just weeks later when it begins on March 11.
