M
Marlene
Guest
NEW YORK (Variety) --- TNT has bought the cable rights to reruns of the action series "Alias" for a minimum of $20 million.
Distributor Buena Vista TV will deliver at least 88 episodes to TNT, which will be able to start running "Alias" up to 10 times a week beginning in the fall of 2005.
TNT may end up sharing "Alias" with TV stations during its run because Buena Vista has reserved the right to sell it in syndication for weekend play while TNT schedules it Monday through Friday.
The series, which stars Jennifer Garner (news), has never racked up big ratings for ABC on Sunday nights --- it averages a relatively modest 8.2 million total viewers, down about 15% from last year --- but the series pulls in enough adults 18-49 to make it highly salable on Madison Avenue.
Thanks to its lineup of off-network hours such as "Law & Order," "Charmed," "Angel," "ER" and "The X-Files" --- to be bolstered this fall by a weekly play of the hit CBS series "Without a Trace" --- TNT has vaulted to No. 1 among all cable networks in total viewers, adults 18-49 and adults 25-54.
Distributor Buena Vista TV will deliver at least 88 episodes to TNT, which will be able to start running "Alias" up to 10 times a week beginning in the fall of 2005.
TNT may end up sharing "Alias" with TV stations during its run because Buena Vista has reserved the right to sell it in syndication for weekend play while TNT schedules it Monday through Friday.
The series, which stars Jennifer Garner (news), has never racked up big ratings for ABC on Sunday nights --- it averages a relatively modest 8.2 million total viewers, down about 15% from last year --- but the series pulls in enough adults 18-49 to make it highly salable on Madison Avenue.
Thanks to its lineup of off-network hours such as "Law & Order," "Charmed," "Angel," "ER" and "The X-Files" --- to be bolstered this fall by a weekly play of the hit CBS series "Without a Trace" --- TNT has vaulted to No. 1 among all cable networks in total viewers, adults 18-49 and adults 25-54.