Expanded 'X Factor' bumps 'New Girl'

Fox is expanding "The X Factor" to two hours on three different nights in October, putting "New Girl" on the bench until November. The network is slotting an additional 30 minutes for the unscripted series on Oct. 12, 13 and 18 because it was pleased with footage from the upcoming round in which judges visit contestants' homes, according to a network spokeswoman. New episodes of "Girl" had been scheduled for Oct. 12 and 18, but will now be tabled to make room for the two-hour "Factor." The first date had "Girl" running Wednesday instead of its usual Tuesday 9:30 p.m. because post-season MLB baseball will air instead. "Girl" was alread pre-empted on Oct. 25 because of a special two-and-a-half-hour edition of "Factor." A "Girl" repeat was also previously scheduled for Oct. 13. Now "Girl" finds itself taking an unexpected three-week break after an initial three-week run that proved successful enough to earn a full-season order. "Girl" built on its "Glee" lead-in all three weeks, averaging 9.4 million viewers and a 4.6 rating/11 share among viewers 18-49. But Fox is confident "Girl" performed strongly enough to continue in November where it left off and be better set up for an uninterrupted run through the rest of the fall. "Factor" has also been a solid addition for Fox, averaging 12.1 million and 4.1/11. It has beat all comers in the 18-49 demo all six nights it has aired to date. Contact Andrew Wallenstein at andrew.wallenstein@variety.com