FX is an American
pay television
Pay television, also known as subscription television, premium television or, when referring to an individual service, a premium channel, refers to Subscription business model, subscription-based television services, usually provided by multichan ...
channel owned by
FX Networks, LLC, a subsidiary of the
Disney General Entertainment Content
Disney General Entertainment Content, Trade name, doing business as Walt Disney Television, is an American entertainment company that oversees television content and assets owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company. Forming the company's Gen ...
unit of
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
. It is based at the
Fox Studios
20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...
lot in
Century City
Century City is a 176-acre (71.2 ha) neighborhood and business district in Los Angeles, California. Located on the Westside to the south of Santa Monica Boulevard around 10 miles (16 km) west of Downtown Los Angeles, Century City is one of ...
,
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
. FX originally launched on June 1, 1994.
The network's original programming aspires to the standards of
premium cable
Pay television, also known as subscription television, premium television or, when referring to an individual service, a premium channel, refers to subscription-based television services, usually provided by multichannel television providers, b ...
channels in regard to mature themes and content, high-quality writing, directing and acting. Sister channels
FXM and
FXX
FXX is an American basic cable channel owned by the Walt Disney Television unit of The Walt Disney Company through FX Networks, LLC. It is the partner channel of FX, with its programming focusing on original and acquired comedy series and fe ...
were launched in 1994 and 2013, respectively. FX also carries
rerun
A rerun or repeat is a rebroadcast of an episode of a radio or television program. There are two types of reruns – those that occur during a hiatus, and those that occur when a program is syndicated.
Variations
In the United Kingdom, the word ...
s of theatrical films and terrestrial-network
sitcom
A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ne ...
s. Advertising-free content was available through the FX+ premium subscription service until it was shut down on August 21, 2019.
As of September 2018, FX is available to approximately 89.2 million television households (96.7% of households with cable) in the United States. In addition to the flagship U.S. network, the "FX" name is licensed to a number of related
pay television
Pay television, also known as subscription television, premium television or, when referring to an individual service, a premium channel, refers to Subscription business model, subscription-based television services, usually provided by multichan ...
channels in various countries around the world.
History
1994–1997: Early years
FX, originally stylized as "fX", launched on June 1, 1994. Broadcasting from a large "
apartment
An apartment (American English), or flat (British English, Indian English, South African English), is a self-contained housing unit (a type of residential real estate) that occupies part of a building, generally on a single story. There are ma ...
" in
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
's
Flatiron District
The Flatiron District is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, named after the Flatiron Building at 23rd Street, Broadway and Fifth Avenue. Generally, the Flatiron District is bounded by 14th Street, Union Square and Green ...
, fX was one of the first forays into large-scale
interactive television
Interactive television is a form of media convergence, adding data services to traditional television technology. It has included on-demand delivery of content, online shopping, and viewer polls. Interactive TV is an example of how new informatio ...
. The channel centered on original programming, which was broadcast live every day from the "fX Apartment", and rebroadcasts of classic television shows from the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, such as ''
Batman
Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...
'', ''
Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman is a superhero created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton), and artist Harry G. Peter. Marston's wife, Elizabeth Holloway Marston, Elizabeth, and their life partner, Olive Byr ...
'', ''
Eight Is Enough
''Eight Is Enough'' is an American television comedy-drama series that ran on ABC from March 15, 1977, until May 23, 1981. The show was modeled on the life of syndicated newspaper columnist Tom Braden, a real-life parent with eight children, who ...
'', ''
Nanny and the Professor
''Nanny and the Professor'' is an early 1970s American sitcom created by AJ Carothers and Thomas L. Miller for 20th Century-Fox Television that aired on ABC from January 21, 1970 until
December 27, 1971. During pre-production, the proposed t ...
'' and ''
The Green Hornet
The Green Hornet is a superhero created in 1936 by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker, with input from radio director James Jewell. Since his 1930s radio debut, the character has appeared in numerous serialized dramas in a wide variety of med ...
''.
fX had two taglines during this period: "TV Made Fresh Daily" and "The World's First Living Television Network". The "f" in the channel's name and logo was rendered in lower-case to portray a type of relaxed friendliness; the stylized "X" represented the channel's roots: the crossing searchlights of the
20th Century Fox
20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...
logo.
The live shows were each mostly focused on one broad topic. Shows included ''Personal fX'' (collectibles and antiques), ''The Pet Department'' (pets), ''Under Scrutiny with
Jane Wallace'' (news) and ''Sound fX'' (music). The channel's flagship show, ''Breakfast Time'', hosted by
Laurie Hibberd
Laurie Gelman (née Hibberd) (born April 4, 1964) is a Canadian television personality and writer,"Host of The Mom Show finds heart in NYC; Upper West Side; After scouting for a year, Laurie Gelman found her perfect home". ''National Post'', July ...
and
Tom Bergeron
Thomas Raymond Bergeron (born May 6, 1955) is an American television personality, game show host, comedian and actor, best known for hosting ''Hollywood Squares'' from 1998 to 2004, ''America's Funniest Home Videos'' from 2001 to 2015, and ''Danci ...
, was formatted like an informal magazine show and was an Americanized version of Great Britain's ''
The Big Breakfast
''The Big Breakfast'' is a British breakfast light entertainment television programme that was broadcast on Channel 4. Originally presented by Chris Evans and Gaby Roslin, the show was latterly presented by Mo Gilligan and AJ Odudu.
The p ...
''. ''Breakfast Time'' and ''Personal fX'' would regularly feature the channel's "roving reporters" – which included
Suzanne Whang
Suzanne Whang ( Korean:황보희, September 28, 1962 – September 17, 2019) was an American television host, comedian, radio host, author, minister, writer, producer, and political activist. She is best known for having been the host of the HGTV ...
, John Burke and
Phil Keoghan
Philip John Keoghan ( ; born 31 May 1967) is a New Zealand television personality, best known for hosting the The Amazing Race (American TV series), American version of ''The Amazing Race'' on CBS, since its 2001 debut. He is the creator and h ...
– visiting unique places around the United States live via satellite. Other notable fX personalities included
Karyn Bryant
Karyn Elaine Bryant (born December 23, 1968) is an American actress, writer, and television personality.
Early life
Bryant was born and raised in Boston, Massachusetts. While in Massachusetts, she completed secondary school at Lawrence Academy ...
and
Orlando Jones
Orlando Jones (born April 10, 1968) is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He is known for being one of the original cast members of the sketch comedy series ''MADtv'', for his role as the 7 Up spokesman from 1999 to 2002, and for his role a ...
, who were panelists on ''Sound fX''.
The channel prided itself on its interactivity with viewers. fX, in 1994, was an early adopter of the internet, embracing
e-mail
Electronic mail (email or e-mail) is a method of exchanging messages ("mail") between people using electronic devices. Email was thus conceived as the electronic ( digital) version of, or counterpart to, mail, at a time when "mail" meant ...
and the
World Wide Web
The World Wide Web (WWW), commonly known as the Web, is an information system enabling documents and other web resources to be accessed over the Internet.
Documents and downloadable media are made available to the network through web se ...
as methods of feedback. Most of the shows would feature instant responses to e-mailed questions, and one show, ''
Backchat'' (hosted by
Jeff Probst
Jeff Probst (; born November 4, 1961) is an American reality show host and executive producer. He is best known as the Emmy Award-winning host of the U.S. version of the reality television show '' Survivor'' since 2000. He was also the host of ...
), was exclusively devoted to responding to viewer mail, whether sent through e-mail or traditional postal mail. Select viewers were allowed to spend a day at the "apartment" and take part in all of the channel's shows. Inside the channel's syndicated programming blocks, channel hosts would frequently appear during commercial breaks to read news headlines, respond to e-mails from viewers about the episode that was airing, or to promote upcoming programming.
The first incarnation of fX was not available on
Time Warner Cable
Time Warner Cable, Inc. (TWC) was an American cable television company. Before it was acquired by Charter Communications on May 18, 2016, it was ranked the second largest cable company in the United States by revenue behind only Comcast, operat ...
, one of the major cable systems in New York City, where its programming originated. TWC would not carry the channel until September 2001.
The live shows gradually disappeared one by one until only ''Personal fX'' remained. ''Breakfast Time'' was moved to the
Fox
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve sp ...
network and renamed ''
Fox After Breakfast'' in mid-1996. It underwent several format changes, but never found a substantial audience and was canceled less than a year later. By the time that all live programming (with the exception of ''Personal fX'') was dropped, the channel focused entirely on its classic television shows until its relaunch in mid-1997. ''Personal fX'' remained on the refocused FX until May 1, 1998. FX vacated the "apartment" in the summer of 1998 and the channel's operations were streamlined with the other Fox-owned subscription channels.
1997–2001: "Fox Gone Cable"
In early 1997, fX was relaunched as "FX: Fox Gone Cable", refocusing the channel's target audience towards men aged 18 to 49. During the first few years after its relaunch, FX was known for little else than airing reruns of such Fox shows as ''
The X-Files
''The X-Files'' is an American science fiction on television, science fiction drama (film and television), drama television series created by Chris Carter (screenwriter), Chris Carter. The series revolves around Federal Bureau of Investigation ...
'' and ''
Married... with Children'', as well as
20th Century Fox
20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...
-produced shows such as ''
M*A*S*H
''M*A*S*H'' (Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) is an American media franchise consisting of a series of novels, a film, several television series, plays, and other properties, and based on the semi-autobiographical fiction of Richard Hooker.
Th ...
'' and ''
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' is an American supernatural fiction, supernatural drama television series created by writer and director Joss Whedon. It is based on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer (film), 1992 film of the same name, also written by W ...
''. The channel also added
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
games to its lineup at that time (at one point sharing rights with then-sister network
Fox Family), and eventually expanded its sports programming to include
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...
races in 2001.
In the summer of 1998, FX debuted three original series: ''
Bobcat's Big Ass Show
''Bobcat's Big Ass Show'' is an American game show that aired on FX in 1998. Hosted by comedian Bobcat Goldthwait and announced by Eric Waddell, the series was based on a concept created by Waddell and packaged by Stone Stanley Productions. The s ...
'', ''Instant Comedy with
the Groundlings
The Groundlings is an American improvisational and sketch comedy troupe and school based in Los Angeles. The troupe was formed by Gary Austin in 1974 and uses an improv format influenced by Viola Spolin, whose improvisational theater techniqu ...
'' and ''
Penn & Teller's Sin City Spectacular''. All three series were cancelled the following year. Soon after its relaunch, the "Fox Gone Cable" tagline was dropped. By 1999, new original TV shows were added with the debut of shows such as ''
Son of the Beach
''Son of the Beach'' is an American sitcom that aired from March 14, 2000, to October 1, 2002, on FX. The series is a spoof of ''Baywatch'', with much of the comedy based on sexual double entendres, puns, innuendo and the like. A major running g ...
'' (a ''
Baywatch
''Baywatch'' is an American action drama television series about lifeguards who patrol the beaches of Los Angeles County, California, and Hawaii, starring David Hasselhoff. It was created by Michael Berk, Douglas Schwartz, and Gregory J. Bo ...
'' parody that starred
Timothy Stack
Timothy Clifton Stack (born November 21, 1954) is an American actor, producer and screenwriter.
Life and career Education
Timothy was born in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, the son of Joan and Tom Stack. He graduated from the Philadelphia-area Unive ...
and was executive produced by
Howard Stern
Howard Allan Stern (born January 12, 1954) is an American radio and television personality, comedian, and author. He is best known for his radio show, ''The Howard Stern Show'', which gained popularity when it was nationally syndicated on terre ...
) and ''
The X Show
''The X Show'' is a magazine, variety, and interview/talk program that aired on FX Network in the US from May 1999 to April 2001. Running time was originally one hour, but this was later reduced to a half-hour. The show was 'guy-themed' much lik ...
'' (a male-oriented late night panel talk show). The channel also acquired the pay-TV syndication rights to reruns of series such as ''
Ally McBeal'', ''
NYPD Blue
''NYPD Blue'' is an American police procedural television series set in New York City, exploring the struggles of the fictional 15th Precinct detective squad in Manhattan. Each episode typically intertwines several plots involving an ensemble c ...
'' and ''
The Practice
''The Practice'' is an American legal drama television series created by David E. Kelley centering on partners and associates at a Boston law firm. The show ran for eight seasons on ABC, from March 4, 1997, to May 16, 2004. It won an Emmy in ...
'' for then-record high prices then unseen in the pay-TV industry despite all three
20th Century Fox Television series being under common ownership; when these shows expensively fumbled in primetime, FX predominantly ran movies in its more high-profile time periods, though with the move of premiere film rights from free-to-air broadcast networks to basic cable channels, FX unexpectedly would end up a benefactor of this change.
2002–2007: Emergence in original programming
Beginning in 2002, the channel emerged as a major force in original pay-TV programming, gaining both acclaim and notoriety for edgy dramas. That year, FX debuted the police drama ''
The Shield
''The Shield'' is an American crime drama television series starring Michael Chiklis that premiered on March 12, 2002, on FX in the United States, and concluded on November 25, 2008, after seven seasons. Known for its portrayal of corrupt pol ...
'', which became a breakout hit. This trend continued the following year with ''
Nip/Tuck
''Nip/Tuck'' is an American medical drama television series created by Ryan Murphy that aired on FX in the United States from July 22, 2003, to March 3, 2010. The series, which also incorporates elements of crime drama, black comedy, family dra ...
'', a drama about two plastic surgeons, and the
Denis Leary
Denis Colin Leary (born August 18, 1957) is an American actor and comedian. A native of Massachusetts, Leary first came to prominence as a stand-up comedian, especially through appearances on MTV (including the comedic song "Asshole") and throu ...
-helmed ''
Rescue Me'', about the lives of a crew of firemen from the
New York City Fire Department
The New York City Fire Department, officially the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY), is an American department of the government of New York City that provides fire protection services, technical rescue/special operations services, ...
post-
9/11. Both shows were lauded by critics, and achieved equal success with viewers. ''Rescue Me'' was one of the few television series to be given an order for an additional season prior to the broadcast of its most recent season: in June 2009 FX renewed the show for an 18-episode sixth season, although the fifth season had not premiered at the time.
Unlike many broadcast networks, FX has chosen to take risks with its programming and push the envelope of what can be shown on television; as a result, most (though not all) of the channel's original series are rated
TV-MA
The TV Parental Guidelines are a television content rating system in the United States that was first proposed on December 19, 1996, by the United States Congress, the television industry and the Federal Communications Commission, federal commun ...
, often for strong profanity, sexual content, and/or violence. Family organizations such as the
Parents Television Council
The Parents Television and Media Council (PTMC), formerly the Parents Television Council (PTC), is an American media advocacy group founded by conservative Christian activist L. Brent Bozell III in 1995, which advocates for what it considers ...
and
American Family Association, have asked advertisers to
boycott
A boycott is an act of nonviolent, voluntary abstention from a product, person, organization, or country as an expression of protest. It is usually for moral, social, political, or environmental reasons. The purpose of a boycott is to inflict som ...
these shows due to their graphic content. Despite this, FX's original programming output, outside of a few shows, has been critically acclaimed for their strong storylines and characters.
Capitalizing on the success of the hit documentary ''
Super Size Me
''Super Size Me'' is a 2004 American documentary film directed by and starring Morgan Spurlock, an American independent filmmaker. Spurlock's film follows a 30-day period from February 1 to March 2, 2003, during which he ate only McDonald's f ...
'', filmmaker
Morgan Spurlock
Morgan Valentine Spurlock (born November 7, 1970) is an American documentary filmmaker, humorist, television producer, screenwriter and playwright.
Spurlock's films include '' Super Size Me'' (2004), '' Where in the World Is Osama bin Laden?'' ( ...
launched a new series, ''
30 Days'', which debuted on FX in June 2005. The series place its subjects in situations uncomfortable to them for 30 days, such as making millionaires work for
minimum wage
A minimum wage is the lowest remuneration that employers can legally pay their employees—the price floor below which employees may not sell their labor. Most countries had introduced minimum wage legislation by the end of the 20th century. Bec ...
, and having
Christians
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
live in a
Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
community.
In the summer of 2005, FX debuted two new comedy series, ''
Starved
''Starved'' is an American television sitcom that aired for one season on FX for seven episodes in 2005. The series was about four friends who each suffer from eating disorders, who met at a "shame-based" support group called Belt Tighteners. I ...
'', about the daily lives of four friends with
eating disorders who live in New York City; and ''
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'' is an American sitcom created by Rob McElhenney and developed by McElhenney and Glenn Howerton that premiered on August 4, 2005 on FX and later FXX beginning with the ninth season in 2013. It stars Charlie ...
'', about the usually very
politically incorrect
''Political correctness'' (adjectivally: ''politically correct''; commonly abbreviated ''PC'') is a term used to describe language, policies, or measures that are intended to avoid offense or disadvantage to members of particular groups in socie ...
comic misadventures of four people who own a bar in the
titular city. Both of these shows feature frank sexual dialogue and strong language, and were pitched as "The Dark Side of Comedy". ''Starved'' was derided by groups that sought to publicize eating disorders and was cancelled after its first season due to low ratings. Conversely, ''Sunny'' quickly became a critical darling, consistently achieved high viewership, and was picked up for a second season within days of its first-season finale. The second season added veteran actor
Danny DeVito
Daniel Michael DeVito Jr. (born November 17, 1944) is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He gained prominence for his portrayal of the taxi dispatcher Louie De Palma in the television series ''Taxi'' (1978–1983), which won him a Gold ...
to the cast, and the show, still airing as of 2021, is the
longest-running live-action sitcom in history.
In 2006, FX debuted two new series, the
reality series
Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...
''
Black. White.'' and the drama ''
Thief
Theft is the act of taking another person's property or services without that person's permission or consent with the intent to deprive the rightful owner of it. The word ''theft'' is also used as a synonym or informal shorthand term for some ...
''; neither series was picked up for a second season. During 2007, FX introduced three new dramas: ''
Dirt
Dirt is an unclean matter, especially when in contact with a person's clothes, skin, or possessions. In such cases, they are said to become dirty.
Common types of dirt include:
* Debris: scattered pieces of waste or remains
* Dust: a genera ...
'', starring
Courteney Cox
Courteney Bass Cox (previously Courteney Cox Arquette; born June 15, 1964) is an American actress and filmmaker. She gained international recognition for her starring role as Monica Geller on the NBC sitcom '' Friends'', which aired from 1994 ...
; ''
The Riches'', starring
Eddie Izzard
Edward John Izzard (; born 7 February 1962) is a British stand-up comedian, actor and activist. Her comedic style takes the form of what appears to the audience as rambling whimsical monologues and self-referential pantomime.
Izzard's stand- ...
and
Minnie Driver
Amelia Fiona Jessica "Minnie" Driver (born 31 January 1970) is an English actress. She rose to prominence with her break-out role in 1995's '' Circle of Friends''. She went on to star in a wide range of films including the cult classic '' Grosse ...
; and ''
Damages
At common law, damages are a remedy in the form of a monetary award to be paid to a claimant as compensation for loss or injury. To warrant the award, the claimant must show that a breach of duty has caused foreseeable loss. To be recognised at ...
'', starring
Glenn Close
Glenn Close (born March 19, 1947) is an American actress. Throughout her career spanning over four decades, Close has garnered numerous accolades, including two Screen Actors Guild Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, three Primetime Emmy Awards ...
,
Ted Danson
Edward Bridge "Ted" Danson III (born December 29, 1947) is an American actor. He achieved stardom playing the lead character Sam Malone on the NBC sitcom ''Cheers'', for which he received two Primetime Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards. ...
and
Rose Byrne
Mary Rose Byrne (born 24 July 1979) is an Australian actress. She made her screen debut in the film ''Dallas Doll'' (1994), and continued to act in Australian film and television throughout the 1990s. She obtained her first leading film role i ...
. All three performed well in the ratings and were renewed for second seasons. By 2008, FX was available in 90.6 million homes in the U.S.
2008–2018: Subsequent times
![FX 2008 logo](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e3/FX_2008_logo.svg)
In 2008, the channel launched a new branding campaign built around the theme "There Is No Box." It alluded to the phrase "
thinking outside the box
Thinking outside the box (also thinking out of the box or thinking beyond the box and, especially in Australia, thinking outside the square) is a metaphor that means to think differently, unconventionally, or from a new perspective. The phrase al ...
" and referred to how the channel's programming goes beyond "the box" concept. In addition, this was a pun related to the channel's creating original shows to compete against premium channels such as
HBO
Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...
. The channel's logo was updated on December 18, 2007, retaining only the FX
wordmark
__notoc__
A wordmark, word mark, or logotype, is usually a distinct text-only typographic treatment of the name of a company, institution, or product name used for purposes of identification and branding. Examples can be found in the graphic iden ...
while removing the
klieg light
A Klieg light is an intense carbon arc lamp especially used in filmmaking. It is named after inventor John Kliegl and his brother Anton Kliegl. Klieg lights usually have a Fresnel lens with a spherical reflector or an ellipsoidal reflector wit ...
logo box that had been placed to its left since the 1997 rebrand. The new branding included an advertising campaign featuring a post-game ad for the channel during Fox's coverage of
Super Bowl XLII. The promo used the
James Morrison song "
You Give Me Something".
During 2008, competition with other pay-TV channels increased. This was evident in the second season ratings for series ''Dirt'' and ''The Riches'', whose ratings decreased significantly from their freshman seasons. During some weeks, viewership for both shows barely exceeded 1 million. Both shows were cancelled in 2008; acquired shows ''
Dharma and Greg
Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...
'', ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'', ''Married... with Children'' and ''
Fear Factor
''Fear Factor'' is an American stunt/ dare game show that first aired on NBC from 2001 to 2006 and was initially hosted by comedian and UFC commentator Joe Rogan. The show was adapted by Endemol USA from the original Dutch series titled ''Now or ...
'' were also removed from the schedule.
On September 3, 2008, FX debuted ''
Sons of Anarchy
''Sons of Anarchy'' is an American action crime drama television series created by Kurt Sutter for FX. Originally aired from September 3, 2008 to December 9, 2014, ''Sons of Anarchy'' follows the lives of a close-knit outlaw motorcycle club ope ...
'', a drama series created by
Kurt Sutter
Kurt Leon Sutter (born May 5, 1960) is an American screenwriter, director, producer, and actor. He worked as a producer, writer, and director on ''The Shield,'' and appeared on the show as hitman Margos Dezerian. Sutter is also the creator of ...
(who previously served as executive producer of ''The Shield'') about a fictional
outlaw motorcycle club
An outlaw motorcycle club is a motorcycle subculture generally centered on the use of Cruiser (motorcycle), cruiser motorcycles, particularly Harley-Davidsons and chopper (motorcycle), choppers, and a set of ideals that purport to celebrate fre ...
devoted to protecting their sheltered
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
town from corporate developers and drug dealers; its September premiere coincided with that of ''The Shield''s final season. ''Sons of Anarchy'' became a critical and commercial success, having aired for seven seasons . In 2010, the series attracted an average of 4.9 million viewers per week, making it ''FX''s highest rated series to date. Other new shows that premiered in 2008 included the
Kenny Hotz
Kenneth Joel Hotz (born May 3, 1967) is a Canadian comedy writer, producer, entertainer and television personality. He is best known as the star of the reality comedy show '' Kenny vs. Spenny'' alongside Spencer Rice. Hotz is the creator of the ...
comedy ''
Testees
''Testees'' is a Canadian television series, created by Kenny Hotz and written and produced by Kenny Hotz and Derek Harvie. Testees originally aired on Thursdays at 10:30 PM EST on FX and ran from October 9, 2008, to December 18, 2008 and debut ...
'', which debuted in October 2008 and was cancelled after its first season. In August 2008, FX relaunched its website, adding streaming of full episodes of its original shows. In 2009, reruns of the former
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
sitcom ''
Spin City
''Spin City'' is an American sitcom television series that aired from September 17, 1996 to April 30, 2002, on ABC. Created by Gary David Goldberg and Bill Lawrence, the show is set in a semi-fictionalized version of the New York City mayor' ...
'' were removed from the schedule (though it was restored early the following year).
In July 2009, FX ordered three new comedy pilots: ''
Archer
Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In m ...
'', an animated series featuring a spy agency, which premiered on January 14, 2010; ''
The League
''The League'' is an American sitcom that aired on FX and later FXX from October 29, 2009, to December 9, 2015, for a total of seven seasons. The series, set in Chicago, Illinois, is a semi-improvised comedy show about a fantasy football league ...
'', with a group of friends who are part of a
fantasy football league; and ''
Louie'', a sitcom starring stand-up comedian and writer
Louis C.K.
Louis Alfred Székely (; born September 12, 1967), known professionally as Louis C.K. (), is an American stand-up comedian, screenwriter, actor, and filmmaker. C.K. won three Peabody Awards, three Grammy Awards, six Primetime Emmy Awards, and a ...
, which "blend
stand-up
Stand-up comedy is a comedic performance to a live audience in which the performer addresses the audience directly from the stage. The performer is known as a comedian, a comic or a stand-up.
Stand-up comedy consists of one-liners, stories, ...
material with ... 'extended vignettes' depicting moments from
he comedian'soffstage experiences." The following year, FX debuted ''
Wilfred'', a comedy series starring
Elijah Wood
Elijah Jordan Wood (born January 28, 1981) is an American actor and producer. He is best known for his portrayal of Frodo Baggins in the ''Lord of the Rings'' film trilogy (2001–2003) and '' The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey'' (2012).
Wood ...
. It is based on the Australian series ''
Wilfred''.
In March 2010, the channel debuted ''
Justified'', a drama series created by
Graham Yost
Graham John Yost (born September 5, 1959) is a Canadian film and television screenwriter. His best-known works are the films ''Speed'', '' Broken Arrow'', and '' Hard Rain'' and the TV series '' Justified''.
Early life, family and education
Yo ...
based on
Elmore Leonard's short story "Fire in the Hole" (which was the series' original
working title
A working title, which may be abbreviated and styled in trade publications after a putative title as (wt), also called a production title or a tentative title, is the temporary title of a product or project used during its development, usually ...
). It starred
Timothy Olyphant
Timothy David Olyphant ( ; born May 20, 1968) is an American actor. He made his acting debut in an off-Broadway theater in 1995, in ''The Monogamist'', and won the Theatre World Award for his performance, and then originated David Sedaris' ''Th ...
as U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens – a tough, soft-spoken lawman with a rough side – and chronicles his cases and personal life, including unfinished business with an ex-wife and his aging father. FX also picked up the crime comedy-drama ''
Terriers
Terrier (from Latin ''terra'', 'earth') is a type of dog originally bred to hunt vermin. A terrier is a dog of any one of many breeds or landraces of the terrier type, which are typically small, wiry, game, and fearless. Terrier breeds vary g ...
'', created by
Ted Griffin, for its fall 2010 lineup; in 2011, the channel debuted the boxing drama ''
Lights Out'', about retired boxing champion Patrick "Lights" Leary who is considering a comeback, despite the serious risks it entails. Despite the critical acclaim that ''Terriers'' and ''Lights Out'' received, the two series were cancelled after their first seasons due to low viewership; For ''Terriers'' specifically, FX Networks president and General Manager
John Landgraf
John Phillip Landgraf (born May 20, 1962) is the Chairman of FX Networks. He is also a member of
the Peabody Awards board of directors, which is presented by the University of Georgia's Henry W. Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication. ...
would later admit in a 2016 interview with critic
Alan Sepinwall
Alan Sepinwall (born October 19, 1973) is an American television reviewer and writer. He spent 14 years as a columnist with ''The Star-Ledger'' in Newark until leaving the newspaper in 2010 to work for the entertainment news website HitFix. He ...
that "I cannot think of a more painful moment of my career than the one when I defined ''Terriers'' as a failure by canceling it."
On October 1, 2010, parent company
News Corporation
News Corporation (abbreviated News Corp.), also variously known as News Corporation Limited, was an American multinational mass media corporation controlled by media mogul Rupert Murdoch and headquartered at 1211 Avenue of the Americas in Ne ...
(which spun off FX and the company's other U.S.-based entertainment properties to
21st Century Fox in July 2013) pulled its channels from
Dish Network
DISH Network Corporation (DISH, an acronym for DIgital Sky Highway) is an American television provider and the owner of the direct-broadcast satellite provider Dish, commonly known as Dish Network, and the over-the-top IPTV service, Sling TV. A ...
due to a
carriage dispute
A carriage dispute is a disagreement over the right to "carry", that is, retransmit, a broadcaster's signal. Carriage disputes first occurred between broadcasters and cable companies and now include direct broadcast satellite and other multicha ...
over
retransmission consent
Retransmission consent is a provision of the 1992 United States Cable Television Consumer Protection and Competition Act that requires cable operators and other multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs) to obtain permission from commer ...
revenue. FX returned to the satellite provider's channel lineup on October 29, 2010, after Dish Network and News Corporation signed a long-term carriage agreement. On November 1, 2010, following a similar dispute, FX and its sister channels were restored by New York City-based cable provider
Cablevision
Cablevision Systems Corporation was an American cable television company with systems serving areas surrounding New York City. It was the fifth-largest cable provider and ninth-largest television provider in the United States. Throughout its ex ...
through a separate carriage agreement.
On October 14, 2011, FX announced it picked up the rights to develop a series based on ''
Scar Tissue
Scar tissue may refer to:
Medicine
* Scar, an area of fibrous tissue that replaces normal skin after injury
* Granulation tissue, a product of healing in major wounds
Film and television
* ''Scar Tissue'' (1975 film), or ''Wanted: Babysitter'' ...
'' and ''Lords of the Sunset Strip'', the autobiographies of the
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1983, comprising vocalist Anthony Kiedis, bassist Flea (musician), Flea, drummer Chad Smith, and guitarist John Frusciante. Their music incorporates element ...
singer
Anthony Kiedis and his father, Blackie Dammett. HBO had picked up the series, which was to be titled ''Spider & Son'', a few years before but never completed the project. ''
Entourage
An entourage () is an informal group or band of people who are closely associated with a (usually) famous, notorious, or otherwise notable individual. The word can also refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* L'entourage, French hip hop / rap collecti ...
'' writer/producers Marc Abrams and Mike Benson were tapped as its
showrunner
A showrunner (or colloquially a helmer) is the top-level executive producer of a television series production who has creative and management authority through combining the responsibilities of employer and, in comedy or dramas, typically also th ...
s and Kiedis was to be involved as a co-producer. Dammett said in 2013 that the show has been "mothballed", and he hopes interest will resume on the project once the Red Hot Chili Peppers wrapped up their world tour that year. As of 2014 there has been no mention from FX, Kiedis or Dammett on the status of the series. On January 30, 2013, FX premiered the 1980s-set
Cold War
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
drama ''
The Americans
''The Americans'' is an American historical drama, period spy fiction, spy drama television series created by Joe Weisberg that aired on the FX (TV channel), FX television network for six seasons from January 30, 2013, to May 30, 2018. Weisberg ...
''.
2019–present: Disney subsidiary
![FX Networks 2022 logo](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/66/FX_Networks_2022_logo.webp)
On March 20, 2019,
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
acquired 21st Century Fox.
Consequently, FX Networks was integrated into the newly renamed
Walt Disney Television
Disney General Entertainment Content, doing business as Walt Disney Television, is an American entertainment company that oversees television content and assets owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company. Forming the company's General Enter ...
unit.
In a September 2018 interview with ''Variety'' of the Disney-Fox deal, Landgraf said, "I think this is a necessary step. I have curiosity and a bit of anxiety about how it will work, but I'm really excited about it.
On April 8, 2019, FX Networks had acquired off-network rights to ''
Family Guy
''Family Guy'' is an American animated sitcom originally conceived and created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The show centers around the Griffin family, Griffins, a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Peter Griff ...
'', starting with its sixteenth season and ''
Bob's Burgers
''Bob's Burgers'' is an American adult animated sitcom created by Loren Bouchard that premiered on Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox on January 9, 2011. The show centers on the Belcher family—parents Bob Belcher, Bob and Linda Belcher, Linda and t ...
'', starting with its ninth season. ''Family Guy'' began airing on FXX on April 16, 2019, while ''Bob's Burgers'' made its debut on September 24, 2019. FXX shares the rights to ''Family Guy'' with sister network
Freeform.
WarnerMedia
Warner Media, LLC ( traded as WarnerMedia) was an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate. It was headquartered at the 30 Hudson Yards complex in New York City, United States.
It was originally established in 1972 by ...
's
Adult Swim
Adult Swim (AS; stylized as dult swim
Dult is a village in Batala in Gurdaspur district of Punjab State, India. It is located from sub district headquarter, from district headquarter and from Sri Hargobindpur. The village is administrated by Sarpanch an elected representati ...
and often abbreviated as s is an American adult-oriented night-time cable television Television channel, channel that shares channel space with the basic cable network Cartoon Network and is programme ...
and
TBS held the rights to older seasons of both shows; WarnerMedia's rights to ''Family Guy'' expired on September 18, 2021, at which point reruns are exclusive to FX Networks and Freeform, with the rights to ''Bob's Burgers'' similarly coming under FX Networks' full control in 2023.
On May 14, 2019,
Comcast
Comcast Corporation (formerly known as American Cable Systems and Comcast Holdings),Before the AT&T merger in 2001, the parent company was Comcast Holdings Corporation. Comcast Holdings Corporation now refers to a subsidiary of Comcast Corpora ...
relinquished its control in
Hulu
Hulu () is an American subscription streaming service majority-owned by The Walt Disney Company, with Comcast's NBCUniversal holding a minority stake. It was launched on October 29, 2007 and it offers a library of films and television serie ...
to Disney effective immediately. As a result, the streaming service became a division of
Walt Disney Direct-to-Consumer & International
Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution (DMED), formerly Walt Disney Direct-to-Consumer & International (DTCI), is one of The Walt Disney Company's five major business segments consisting of Disney's streaming services and overseas media busi ...
with Comcast effectively becoming a
silent partner
A silent partner is one who shares in the profits and losses of a business, but is not involved in its management.
Silent partner or Silent Partners may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Silent Partner'', a 2005 film starring Tara Reid ...
. In November 2019, it was announced that FX would produce series for Hulu under the "
FX on Hulu
FX Networks, LLC, is a company consisting of a network of cable channels plus a production company and a subsidiary of the Disney General Entertainment Content segment of The Walt Disney Company. Originally a part of 21st Century Fox, the comp ...
" brand. Four series previously in development for the linear FX channel will now premiere on Hulu, including ''
Devs
''Devs'' is an American science fiction thriller television miniseries created, written, and directed by Alex Garland. It premiered on March 5, 2020, on FX on Hulu.
Lily Chan (Sonoya Mizuno) is a software engineer for Amaya, a quantum computing ...
'',
''Mrs. America'' and
''A Teacher''. Furthermore, episodes aired on the linear FX cable network will be available on Hulu the next day. "FX on Hulu" launched on March 2, 2020.
On June 11, 2019, Hulu and FX picked up show rights to
Lionsgate
Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation, doing business as Lionsgate, is a Canadian-American entertainment company. It was formed by Frank Giustra on July 10, 1997, domiciled in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and is currently headquartered ...
films released in 2020 and 2021.
In December 2021, Disney announced that it would discontinue the "FX on Hulu" brand, resulting in the Hulu hub for FX and FXX programming being rebranded as simply "FX" going forward. The rebranding will also apply to Disney+ for international markets, including Canada.
Programming
FX's most popular original shows include ''
Justified'', ''
Damages
At common law, damages are a remedy in the form of a monetary award to be paid to a claimant as compensation for loss or injury. To warrant the award, the claimant must show that a breach of duty has caused foreseeable loss. To be recognised at ...
'', ''
Nip/Tuck
''Nip/Tuck'' is an American medical drama television series created by Ryan Murphy that aired on FX in the United States from July 22, 2003, to March 3, 2010. The series, which also incorporates elements of crime drama, black comedy, family dra ...
'', ''
Rescue Me'', ''
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'' is an American sitcom created by Rob McElhenney and developed by McElhenney and Glenn Howerton that premiered on August 4, 2005 on FX and later FXX beginning with the ninth season in 2013. It stars Charlie ...
'', ''
The League
''The League'' is an American sitcom that aired on FX and later FXX from October 29, 2009, to December 9, 2015, for a total of seven seasons. The series, set in Chicago, Illinois, is a semi-improvised comedy show about a fantasy football league ...
'', ''
Sons of Anarchy
''Sons of Anarchy'' is an American action crime drama television series created by Kurt Sutter for FX. Originally aired from September 3, 2008 to December 9, 2014, ''Sons of Anarchy'' follows the lives of a close-knit outlaw motorcycle club ope ...
'', ''
The Shield
''The Shield'' is an American crime drama television series starring Michael Chiklis that premiered on March 12, 2002, on FX in the United States, and concluded on November 25, 2008, after seven seasons. Known for its portrayal of corrupt pol ...
'', ''
The Strain
''The Strain'' is a 2009 vampire horror novel by Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan. It is the first installment in ''The Strain Trilogy'', and was followed by '' The Fall'' (2010) and ''The Night Eternal'' (2011).
Plot synopsis
A Boeing 77 ...
'', ''
Archer
Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In m ...
'', ''
American Horror Story
''American Horror Story'' is an American anthology horror television series created by Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk for the cable network FX. The first installment in the '' American Story'' media franchise, each season is conceived as a ...
'', ''
Anger Management
Anger management is a psycho-therapeutic program for anger prevention and control. It has been described as deploying anger successfully.Schwarts, Gil. July 2006. Anger Management', July 2006 The Office Politic. Men's Health magazine. Emmaus, PA: ...
'', ''
The Americans
''The Americans'' is an American historical drama, period spy fiction, spy drama television series created by Joe Weisberg that aired on the FX (TV channel), FX television network for six seasons from January 30, 2013, to May 30, 2018. Weisberg ...
'', ''
Better Things'', ''
Louie'', ''
You're the Worst
''You're the Worst'' is an American comedy-drama television series created by Stephen Falk. Originally broadcast by FX, the series moved to its sister channel FXX beginning with the second season. The series follows Jimmy (Chris Geere), a self- ...
'', ''
Fargo'', ''
American Crime Story
''American Crime Story'' is an American anthology true crime television series developed by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski, who are also executive producers, alongside Brad Falchuk, Nina Jacobson, Ryan Murphy, and Brad Simpson. The ser ...
'', ''
Legion
Legion may refer to:
Military
* Roman legion, the basic military unit of the ancient Roman army
* Spanish Legion, an elite military unit within the Spanish Army
* Legion of the United States, a reorganization of the United States Army from 179 ...
'', ''
Snowfall'' and ''
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
''.
The channel also broadcasts theatrically released feature films from sister companies
Walt Disney Pictures
Walt Disney Pictures is an American film production company and subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, which is owned by The Walt Disney Company. The studio is the flagship producer of live-action feature films within the Walt Disney Studios uni ...
,
Marvel Studios
Marvel Studios, LLC (originally known as Marvel Films from 1993 to 1996) is an American film and television production company that is a subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, a division of the Walt Disney Company. Marvel Studios produces the Mar ...
, and
20th Century Studios
20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Disn ...
as well as other
film studios such as
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...
,
Sony Pictures Animation
Sony Pictures Animation Inc. is an American animation studio owned by Sony Entertainment's Sony Pictures Entertainment through their Motion Picture Group division and founded on May 9, 2002. The studio's films are distributed worldwide by So ...
,
Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...
,
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...
,
Lionsgate Films
Lionsgate Films (formerly known as Cinépix Film Properties) is an American film production and film distribution studio, headquartered in Santa Monica and founded in Canada, and is the flagship division of Lionsgate Entertainment. It is the larg ...
,
Relativity Media
Relativity Media is an American media company founded in 2004 by Lynwood Spinks and Ryan Kavanaugh. The company brokered film finance deals and later branched into film production and other entertainment ventures. The company was commerciall ...
,
Village Roadshow Pictures
Village Roadshow Pictures is the American subsidiary of the Australian co-producer and co-financier of major Hollywood motion pictures established in 1986. It is a division under Village Roadshow Entertainment Group (VREG), which in turn is o ...
,
Warner Bros. Pictures
Warner Bros. Pictures is an American film production and distribution company of the Warner Bros. Pictures Group division of Warner Bros. Entertainment (both ultimately owned by Warner Bros. Discovery). The studio is the flagship producer of ...
,
DreamWorks Pictures
DreamWorks Pictures (also known as DreamWorks SKG and formerly DreamWorks Studios, commonly referred to as DreamWorks) is an American film company and distribution label of Amblin Partners. It was originally founded on October 12, 1994 as a liv ...
, and
DreamWorks Animation
DreamWorks Animation LLC (DWA, also known as DreamWorks Animation Studios and simply known as DreamWorks) is an American animation studio that produces animated films and television programs and is a subsidiary of Universal Pictures, a division ...
which take up much of FX's primetime and the majority of its weekend schedules. It airs repeats of network television sitcoms (such as ''
Two and a Half Men
''Two and a Half Men'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired on CBS for twelve seasons from September 22, 2003, to February 19, 2015. Originally starring Charlie Sheen in the lead role alongside Jon Cryer and Angus T. Jones, t ...
'' and ''
How I Met Your Mother''). From the late 1990s to the mid-2000s, the acquired shows which FX broadcast consisted largely of series originally broadcast on Fox between the late 1980s and the 2000s (such as ''
That '70s Show
''That '70s Show'' is an American television period teen sitcom that aired on Fox from August 23, 1998, to May 18, 2006. The series focuses on the lives of a group of six teenage friends living in the fictional town of Point Place, Wisconsin, ...
'', ''
Married... with Children'', and ''
In Living Color
''In Living Color'' is an American sketch comedy television series that originally ran on Fox from April 15, 1990 to May 19, 1994. Keenen Ivory Wayans created, wrote and starred in the program. The show was produced by Ivory Way Productions in ...
'').
Sports programming
After obtaining the spring
broadcast rights to
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...
,
Fox Sports
Fox Sports is the brand name for a number of sports channels, broadcast divisions, programming, and other media around the world.
The ''Fox Sports'' name has since been used for other sports media assets. These assets are held mainly by the F ...
announced that FX would serve as its pay-TV partner for the 2001 inaugural season of race telecasts. As a result, FX covered several races in the series then known as the
Busch Series
The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...
and
Winston Cup
The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division. In 1971, ...
(including the
All-Star Race), as well as select qualifying and final practice sessions. Having FX carry the race telecasts was intended to promote the channel and encourage NASCAR fans to contact their subscription providers to add FX to their lineup. In 2002,
Peter Liguori
Peter Liguori (born January 7, 1960) is an American business executive who most recently held the position of president and chief executive officer of Tribune Media; he departed the company at the end of March 2017. He was appointed to the positio ...
, who was then president of FX, praised NASCAR for its growth; the channel increased penetration from 58.5 million to 76.6 million households nationwide. FX was removed from Fox's NASCAR coverage in the 2007 season, which saw the Busch Series move exclusively to
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
, and Fox aired all of Nextel Cup races on broadcast television.
In
1997, FX obtained partial pay-TV rights to
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
games; the channel initially aired game telecasts on Monday nights, before moving them to Saturday nights in 1998. In 2000, FX began sharing the Major League Baseball pay-TV rights with then-sister network
Fox Family Channel
The American cable and satellite television network that is now known as Freeform was originally launched as the CBN Satellite Service on April 29, 1977, and has gone through several different owners (and six different name changes) during its h ...
(taking rights to the league's Thursday evening games from
Fox Sports Net
Fox Sports Networks (FSN), formerly known as Fox Sports Net, was the collective name for a group of regional sports channels in the United States. Formed in 1996 by News Corporation, the networks were acquired by The Walt Disney Company on Mar ...
), with games being scheduled on an alternating basis with FX. Starting with the 2001 season, FX also obtained rights to games from the
MLB Division Series, the only playoff round to which Fox did not hold television rights. Among the games televised on FX was
Cal Ripken Jr.
Calvin Edwin Ripken Jr. (born August 24, 1960), nicknamed " The Iron Man", is an American former baseball shortstop and third baseman who played 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Baltimore Orioles (1981–2001). One of his posit ...
's final home game with the
Baltimore Orioles
The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...
in September 2001.
On April 27, 2011, FX began airing
soccer
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
games from the
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...
as part of the league's overall television deal with Fox Sports. In the fall of 2011, FX began broadcasting
Big 12
The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference headquartered in Irving, Texas, USA. It consists of ten full-member universities. It is a member of Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for all sports. Its f ...
,
Conference USA and
Pac-12 college football
College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States.
Unlike most ...
games on Saturdays (mainly primetime games, with some daytime games mixed in), as part of Fox Sports'
broadcasting contracts with the three conferences. In January 2012, FX began broadcasting content from the
Ultimate Fighting Championship
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...
.
With the August 2013 launches of national sports networks
Fox Sports 1
Fox Sports 1 (FS1) is an American pay television channel owned by the Fox Sports Media Group, a unit of Fox Corporation. FS1 replaced the motorsports network Speed on August 17, 2013, at the same time that its companion channel Fox Sports ...
and
Fox Sports 2
Fox Sports 2 (FS2) is an American sports-oriented pay television channel owned by the Fox Sports Media Group, a unit of Fox Corporation. The channel is based at the Fox Sports division's headquarters on the Fox Studio Lot in the Century Cit ...
, FX no longer serves as a regular pay-TV outlet for Fox Sports. However,
UFC 185
''UFC 185: Pettis vs. dos Anjos'' was a mixed martial arts event held on March 14, 2015, at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas.
Background
The event was the third that the UFC has hosted in Dallas, Texas.
The event was headlined by a ...
preliminary fights aired on FX due to FS1 showing college basketball. Also on March 5, 2016, FX aired a
Bundesliga
The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of the German football league system, the Bundesliga is Germany's primary footba ...
match between that league's top two teams
Bayern Munich and
Borussia Dortmund
Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e. V. Dortmund, commonly known as Borussia Dortmund (), BVB (), or simply Dortmund (), is a German professional sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is best known for its men's professional footb ...
to provide wider distribution of the fixture, as Fox, FS1, and FS2 all had sporting commitments of their own at the time of the match and the match was to air on the little-distributed
Fox Soccer Plus
Fox Soccer Plus (formerly Setanta Sports) is an American sports channel dedicated to soccer and rugby league. Launched in 2005 by the Irish sports broadcaster Setanta Sports to offer live and tape-delayed mainstream sports events in the United ...
(which does not have carriage on numerous TV providers). Because this was Fox's first year of coverage of Germany's top soccer league and Bayern and Borussia are the two most successful Bundesliga teams (and have an intense rivalry known as Der Klassiker), Fox wanted to give the game wider distribution, and so the game was moved to FX in a last-minute decision. In June 2016, FX continued its broadcast of sports with the airing of three games from the
Copa América Centenario
The Copa América Centenario ( pt, Copa América Centenário, french: Coupe Amerique Centennaire, en, Centennial Cup America; literally ''Centennial America Cup'') was an international men's association football tournament that was hosted by the ...
in order to gain a wider viewing audience for the selected teams.
On September 14, 2019, Disney announced that FX would air the preliminary bouts for
UFC 242
''UFC 242: Khabib vs. Poirier '' was a mixed martial arts pay-per-view event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on September 7, 2019 at The Arena, Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Background
The event mark ...
. Disney replaced
Fox Sports
Fox Sports is the brand name for a number of sports channels, broadcast divisions, programming, and other media around the world.
The ''Fox Sports'' name has since been used for other sports media assets. These assets are held mainly by the F ...
as UFC's rights holder in 2018. Usually preliminary bouts for UFC air on
ESPN2
ESPN2 is an American multinational pay television network owned by ESPN Inc., a joint venture between The Walt Disney Company (which owns a controlling 80% stake) and Hearst Communications (which owns the remaining 20%).
ESPN2 was initially fo ...
, however because ESPN2 was airing college football, FX was used instead. UFC 242 was the first Disney owned sporting event to air on FX.
On May 17, 2022, the
XFL
XFL may refer to:
Sports
* XFL (2001), a defunct American football league that played its only season in 2001
* XFL (2020), a professional American football league
Vehicles
* Bell XFL Airabonita, a 1940 U.S. Navy experimental interceptor aircra ...
and Disney announced an exclusive broadcast agreement. As part of the agreement, select XFL games will air on FX beginning in 2023.
Network slogans
*"The World's First Living Television Network" (primary; 1994–1996)
*"TV Made Fresh Daily" (secondary; 1994–1996)
*"TV with You in Mind" (1996–1997)
*"Fox Gone Cable" (1997–1999)
*"Please Watch Responsibly" (1999–2001)
*"Are You Xperienced?" (2001–2008)
*"There Is No Box" (2008–2013)
*"FX Has The Movies" (alternate slogan, 2008–present)
*"Fearless" (2013–present)
High definition
FX began broadcasting a
720p
720p (1280×720 px; also called HD ready, standard HD or just HD) is a progressive HDTV signal format with 720 horizontal lines/1280 columns and an aspect ratio (AR) of 16:9, normally known as widescreen HDTV (1.78:1). All major HDTV broadcast ...
HD channel in 2007, which is available on the majority of pay television providers. The SD channel, as was standard with all of Fox's broadcast and pay-TV networks (and also its new Disney siblings, which also all operate in 720p), is now merely downscaled from the HD feed at the provider headend level rather than having a devoted SD feed.
See also
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FX Networks
FX Networks, LLC, is a company consisting of a network of cable channels plus a production company and a subsidiary of the Disney General Entertainment Content segment of The Walt Disney Company. Originally a part of 21st Century Fox, the compan ...
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FXX
FXX is an American basic cable channel owned by the Walt Disney Television unit of The Walt Disney Company through FX Networks, LLC. It is the partner channel of FX, with its programming focusing on original and acquired comedy series and fe ...
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FX Movie Channel
FX Movie Channel (FXM) is an American pay television channel owned by FX Networks, LLC, a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Television division of The Walt Disney Company. It is the sister channel of FX and FXX. The channel's programming consists ...
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FX on Hulu
FX Networks, LLC, is a company consisting of a network of cable channels plus a production company and a subsidiary of the Disney General Entertainment Content segment of The Walt Disney Company. Originally a part of 21st Century Fox, the comp ...
References
External links
FX (US)FX (Canada)FX (Korea)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fx (Tv Channel)
FX Networks
Television networks in the United States
Television channels and stations established in 1994
1994 establishments in New York City
English-language television stations in the United States
Disney television networks