Yellowstone reruns to air on CBS as Hollywood strike flips the script on TV schedules

The cable hit Yellowstone, featuring Kevin Costner, will make its broadcast debut on CBS on Sundays, starting with the first episode, which aired originally in 2018. Reruns of FBI True, a Paramount+ programme, will air on Tuesdays, the network said in a statement.

CBS will fill out its schedule with game shows and reality programmes, including the returning hit Survivor and a new show called Buddy Games, featuring teams of friends sharing a lake house. The network will air the UK version of the current programme Ghosts as well as additional content from Paramount+.

The strike by Hollywood writers and actors has halted production of new situation comedies and dramas, forcing networks like CBS to reconfigure their fall schedules. The Fox network unveiled its plans last week, offering a number of unscripted reality shows that don’t use union actors or writers.

CBS’s plans include a 90-minute version of the news magazine 60 Minutes, a first for the network. The returning reality series The Amazing Race will also air in 90-minute chunks.

Replaying shows from cable or premium outlets like Paramount+, where viewers pay as much as $12 a month for commercial-free programming, will help Paramount promote its streaming service and reduce broadcast TV production costs while offering some viewers shows they haven’t already seen.

Other spinoffs from Paramount’s Yellowstone franchise, a series about a Montana ranching family, already play on the Paramount network that’s carried by cable and satellite TV systems.

All of the major Hollywood studios have been cutting costs in recent months and eliminating thousands of jobs as they try to adapt to the shrinking audience for conventional TV channels and financial losses from their newer streaming operations.

Last week, Walt Disney said it’s considering selling its cable and broadcast networks, including ABC and FX, and seeking a partner for its ESPN sports channels.