 | |
| Country | United States |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Los Angeles,California[1] |
| Programming | |
| Language | English |
| Picture format | 480i (SDTV) 720p (HDTV) |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Disney Entertainment (The Walt Disney Company) |
| Parent | FX Networks |
| Sister channels | |
| History | |
| Launched | September 2, 2013; 12 years ago (2013-09-02) |
| Replaced | Fox Soccer |
| Links | |
| Website | www |
| Availability | |
| Streaming media | |
| Affiliated streaming service | Hulu |
| Service(s) | YouTube TV,Hulu + Live TV,Sling TV,FuboTV,DirecTV Stream,Vidgo |
FXX is an Americanbasic cablechannel owned byFX Networks, a subdivision of theDisney Entertainment business segment and division ofThe Walt Disney Company.[2] It is the sister channel ofFX andFXM, withits programming focusing on original and acquired comedy series and feature films for a primarydemographic of men ages 18–34.[3]
FXX launched on September 2, 2013, at 7:00 a.m. ET/6:00 a.m. CT, replacingFox Soccer.[3] The channel set a record for the longest continuousmarathon in the history of television with a marathon featuring every episode ofThe Simpsons that had been released at the time andThe Simpsons Movie over the course of twelve days.[4] This record has since been broken by a 19-day marathon ofSaturday Night Live by VH1 Classic (nowMTV Classic).[5]
As of November 2023[update], FXX is available to approximately 58,000,000 pay television households in the United States, down from its 2019 peak of 87,000,000 households.[6]
In January 2013, it was reported by various media outlets that sports-focused channelFox Soccer would be shut down and be replaced with a general entertainment network that would act as a brother service toFX; whileFXX (formerly an initialism forFox Extended Extra) was a possible name from the start, another name proposed for the new network was FX2.[7] The decision appeared to have been made afterFox Sports' American television rights to EnglishPremier League soccer matches, which it had shared withESPN, moved toNBC Sports, which acquired the American rights to the league in October 2012, a deal that took effect at the start of the2013–14 season.[8] Also likely having an effect on Fox Soccer's future was the eventual conversion of two other Fox Sports specialty channels onAugust 17, 2013, when the motorsports-orientedSpeed became the new general-interestFox Sports 1 and the extreme sports-heavy Fuel TV converted toFox Sports 2 (Premier League broadcasts on NBC began that same day).
On March 28, 2013,News Corporation's FX Networks outlined plans to launch FXX on September 2 which would replace the Fox Soccer channel. The new network would be available in approximately 74 million American homes. FX President John Landgraf said FXX would complete "a suite of three channels" targeting three different demos: FX would aim for viewers 18–49, FXX would seek viewers 18–34, and its movie network,FXM, would go for viewers 25–54. He would oversee all three channels.[3]
In the months leading up to the launch, Fox was generally concerned about definitively confirming where FXX would be placed on cable/satellite channel lineups, though Fox officials had indicated off the record that the plan was to indeed replace Fox Soccer with the new network.[9]
Fox Soccer's conversion to FXX took place on the morning of September 2, 2013, leading out of a final airing of Fox Soccer'sBeing: Liverpool with an hour block ofpaid programming (which featured an FXX disclaimer card at the front) at 6 a.m. (ET), followed by the proper launch an hour later at 7 a.m. (ET).
The launch clip hadFC Barcelona'sLionel Messi about to score a goal (two scenes taken from theUEFA Champions League matches on April 3, 2012 and March 12, 2013) "broken up" before gradually transitioning to a clip ofFrank Reynolds (Danny DeVito) ofIt's Always Sunny in Philadelphia bursting through a leather couch (representing a television screen being "ripped") being "birthed" in the nude (a scene taken from the 2009 Christmas special episode "A Very Sunny Christmas"), suggesting the "birth" of FXX; this led into thepilot episode ofParks and Recreation, the start of an all-day marathon airing of the series.[10] As a result of the rebranding, Fox Soccer's remaining event rights, includingCONCACAF andUEFA matches, have moved to Fox Sports 1, Fox Sports 2, or in some cases,Fox Soccer Plus.
The channel was intended by Fox to be part of the basic cable lineup, but it started on many providers (includingSuddenlink Communications,Comcast,DirecTV,Verizon Fios, andCharter Communications) in its previous placement within a specialty sports package (along with the costs which come with those packages), a holdover from the channel's previous iteration as Fox Soccer.[11] The vast majority of providers have since moved it to reasonable basic channel positions over time, often next to FX where possible.
In October 2013, oil companyExxonMobil sued Fox fortrademark infringement and claimed that FXX's logo infringed the interlocking X of its Exxon fuel brand. The network disputed the company's claim that there was the possibility of confusion, with a spokesperson explaining that "we are confident that viewers won't tune into FXX looking for gas or motor oil and drivers won't pull up to an Exxon pump station expecting to getIt's Always Sunny in Philadelphia."[12] ExxonMobil and 21CF dismissed the lawsuit in October 2015.[13]
On November 15, 2013, FXX acquiredbroadcast syndication rights to theFox seriesThe Simpsons. Original contracts had previously stated that syndication rights for the series would not be sold tocable until the series' conclusion in deference to the local broadcast stations throughout the United States which had carried the series in syndication since the fall of 1993. However, all parties had not projected the series' longevity, nor of the technological advances since 1993.[14]
The series premiered on the network on August 21, 2014, starting with a twelve-daymarathon. This featured the first 552 episodes (every episode that had been released at the time) aired chronologically, includingThe Simpsons Movie, which FX Networks had already owned the rights to air. The first day of the marathon was the highest rated broadcast day in the history of FXX at that time, the ratings more than tripled those of regular prime time programming for FXX. Ratings during the first six nights of the marathon grew night after night, with FXX ranking within the top 5 networks in basic cable each night.[15][16][4] It became the longest continuous marathon in the history of television, untilVH1 Classic broke FXX's record with their nineteen-day marathon ofSaturday Night Live in February 2015.[5]
ACanadian version of FXX launched on April 1, 2014.[17] The launch was an extension of FX Network's joint venture with Canada'sRogers Sports & Media; aCanadian version of FX previously launched on October 31, 2011.[18] Both networks are jointly owned by the two entities, with FX Networks owing a 33.36% stake in each.[19]
On December 17, 2014, the network announced it would launch a late-night animation block on January 22. The block would feature shows originally developed and produced byFox'sAnimation Domination High-Def Studios. Using theAnimation Domination branding, the block would launch with eight new episodes ofLucas Bros. Moving Co. andStone Quackers. The block however, only lasted for several months before being canceled in 2016, along with the above-mentioned series.[20]
In November 2016, aroundThanksgiving, FXX launched a 13-day, 600-episode run ofThe Simpsons in honor of the show's 600th episode. The marathon would include the first four episodes ofThe Simpsons' 28th season (of which was then-current as the season was still being aired by Fox) and ending with the episode "Treehouse of Horror XXVII".[21][22]
On July 15, 2017, a2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup soccer game featuring theU.S. men's national team aired on FXX due to sports programming conflicts with Fox and Fox Sports 1;The Washington Post noted that the match was likely placed on FXX rather than Fox Sports 2 due to its broader carriage, as it is available in nearly as many households as FS1, and on basic tiers on some providers.[23]
As part of21st Century Fox'sacquisition byThe Walt Disney Company, FX Networks was integrated into the newly renamedWalt Disney Television unit on March 20, 2019.[24][25] On April 8, 2019, FX Networks announced its acquisition of off-network rights toFamily Guy, starting with its sixteenth season, andBob's Burgers, starting with its ninth season.Family Guy began airing on FXX on April 16, whileBob's Burgers made its debut on September 24, 2019. FXX shares the rights toFamily Guy with sister networksFreeform and FX, which aired the show until 2024.
Warner Bros. Discovery'sAdult Swim andTBS originally held the cable rights to the prior seasons of both shows; their rights to older seasons ofFamily Guy expired originally on September 18, 2021, leaving TBS permanently, while Adult Swim reacquired the rights of the show and returned on January 1, 2025, with a 3-day marathon, sharing rights with FXX andParamount Skydance'sComedy Central (who acquired the rights in August 14, 2024 and airing since September 2, 2024 with a fan-favorite episodes marathon),[26][27][28] while withBob's Burgers a similar case happen, with the show left TBS on August 26, 2023, while at the same time with Adult Swim, they made a new deal to share rights in both networks, with earlier seasons premiered on FXX in September 28, 2023 and the later seasons premiered on Adult Swim in October 2, 2023, sharing rights with both networks (but not with TBS).[29][30]
On August 29, 2019, FXX announcedCake, a half-hour series featuring short-form adult animation and live-action content, would premiere September 25.[31]Cake is the network's first original animated program since the aborted pilot ofCassius and Clay[32] and the discontinuation of theirAnimation Domination block in 2016.
On September 20, 2021, FXX began airing reruns of fellow 20th Television animated showsKing of the Hill andThe Cleveland Show, and dramatically overhauled the network lineup to air roughly 14 hours of adult animated series every day, aside from for airings ofIt's Always Sunny in Philadelphia andDave (beforeDave was cancelled in 2024, andSunny reruns being reduced and those hours taken by the adult animation shows), with films only airing in the mornings and early afternoon.[33] This later expanded to roughly 16 hours after FXX began airingFuturama on November 15, 2021, having acquired the off-network rights to that series fromNBCUniversal'sSyfy (who last aired the series on November 10).[34][35][36] FX Networks currently shares the rights toFamily Guy,King of the Hill,Bob's Burgers andFuturama with Adult Swim, while also sharingFamily Guy andFuturama with Comedy Central, previouslyThe Cleveland Show was shared before left the network, remaining with sporadically airings on Comedy Central.
FXX ran its first marathon of everyFamily Guy episode from the first 19 seasons, except "Partial Terms of Endearment", from December 25, 2021 to January 1, 2022, in a similar fashion to their previous multi-day marathons ofThe Simpsons.[citation needed]
Following the shift in the network lineup, FXX averaged 243,000 viewers in primetime in 2022, up 23% compared to 2021, ranking 53rd among all networks. FXX also went up 23% in the 18-49 demographic, averaging 139,000 and ranking 25th. Both numbers beat that of their closest competitor, Adult Swim.[37]
On September 1, 2023, the carriage agreement between Disney and Charter expired due to Charter's request that Disney provide free access toDisney+ andESPN+ for all of Charter's subscribers. Disney requested that Charter maintain temporary carriage of their networks during the negotiation period, but Charter declined. This resulted in these networks being removed from the service that lasted 11 days, during which 15 million Spectrum television customers were unable to access to Disney's television networks.
On September 11, 2023, Charter and Disney agreed to a renewed carriage agreement, which allowed Spectrum customers to resume watching the Disney content that were originally promised in their subscription package. However, in addition to FXX,BabyTV,Freeform,FXM,Nat Geo Wild,Nat Geo Mundo,Disney Junior, andDisney XD were not restored.[38][39][40]
On June 26, 2025, Charter and Disney struck a new deal with Spectrum that they'll be addingHulu's ad-supported tier and restore 8 networks that were dropped in 2023, which includes FXX and its sister network FXM.[41]
Much of FXX's original programming has consisted of comedy series that previously aired on Fox’s sister networks, such asIt's Always Sunny in Philadelphia,Archer, and shows from theAnimation Domination High-Def block. Premieres of such programming generally air on Wednesday or Thursday nights in the last hour of network primetime. As of September 2021, FXX's acquired lineup (outside programming shared with FX and FXM) consists of film telecasts in the morning and adult animated series (mainly20th Television Animation-produced shows) airing in the afternoon and evenings.
FXX is the cable home ofThe Simpsons (excluding theTracey Ullmanshorts), of which marathons are aired in primetime. FXX is known for their largerSimpsons marathon events in which the entire run of the series at the time is aired over a number of days.[42]
A third marathon, the "Plus+Size Holiday Marathon," aired from December 17 to 31, 2019, and consisted of 661 episodes, excluding "Stark Raving Dad", and the syndication premiere ofThe Longest Daycare animated short. The marathon was a promotional event forDisney+, which would become the exclusive streaming service for the series after the shuttering of FX'sSimpsons World hub.[43]
'The launch of FXX this September was announced this morning, but we have nothing to announce today about FOX Soccer,' said a FOX Sports spokesperson.
