Fox Cancels New Year’s Eve Show Amid COVID Spread

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Omicron overcomes live special

Fox New Year's Eve 2022
Ken Jeong and Joel McHale had been scheduled to host Fox's special (Image credit: Fox)

Fox said it canceled its planned New Year’s Eve special because of the fast-spreading variant of the COVID virus.

“While we are confident in the health and safety protocols for Fox’s New Year’s Eve Toast & Roast 2022, the recent velocity of the spread of Omicron cases has made it impossible to produce a live special in Times Square that meets our standards,” Fox said in a statement about not moving forward with producing the show in New York.

“The health and safety of our casts and crews has always been, and will continue to be, of the utmost importance.  Replacement programming for New Year’s Eve on Fox will be announced in the coming days,” Fox said.

 Fox’s special was scheduled to be hosted by Ken Jeong and Joel McHale, with special correspondent Kelly Osbourne.

The network was working with iHeartRadio to provide performances from Billy Idol, Imagine Dragons, Maroon 5 and Pink.

Trace Adkins, the star of Fox’s upcoming series set in the world of country music, Monarch, was also expected to perform.

Jon Lafayette
Jon Lafayette

Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.