The Good Doctor is scrubbing back in earlier than planned.
TV Line is reporting that the hit drama series will return with the back half of The Good Doctor Season 5 on Monday, February 28 at 10/9c.
The quicker premiere is due to Promised Land being banished from the schedule after five low-rated episodes.
The freshman drama will air a new episode on ABC Monday, February 21, but will become a Hulu exclusive series on Tuesday, March 1.
Whether that will result in additional episodes, we don’t know.
“Promised Land is a beautifully executed and tremendously entertaining series of which everyone at our company is extremely proud,” an ABC rep states to TV Line of the soapy drama.
“We know it has a passionate audience that is very invested in this show, and those viewers will be able to stream all subsequent episodes exclusively on Hulu every Tuesday for the rest of the season.”
Hulu previously picked up ABC comedy Maggie as an original, but that show will premiere on Hulu first.
It’s unclear whether the streaming numbers could help the drama eke out a second season renewal.
ABC premiered the second episode exclusively on Hulu ahead of its linear premiere, clearly trying to drum up some interest.
Promised Land Season 1 is averaging a 0.2 rating in the demo, which is not good enough for a broadcast renewal.
The demo swelled to a 0.3 with a week of DVR factored in, so it’s looking like the show will not be back.
The decision could also signal that fellow low-rated drama Queens will not be staging a comeback.
As for The Good Doctor Season 5, the hit medical drama wrapped its fall run in late November.
The series typically returns in March following a midseason hiatus, but the premiere date was M.I.A. as ABC announced Promised Land’s premiere.
What are your thoughts on the move?
Will you catch Promised Land on Hulu?
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Paul Dailly is the Associate Editor for TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter.