Spike TV has picked up four new unscripted series
to join the schedule in 2012, the network said Wednesday.
Sharon Levy, executive VP of original series and
Tim Duffy, senior VP of original series will oversee the new entries American Digger, Big Easy Justice, World's
Worst Tenants and Undercover Stings,
which continue on Spike's programming theme of men in high pressure/high stakes
situations.
"We believe these series all have the same
ingredients that are working right now on Spike which is really charismatic,
authoritative experts who are in are in a very high-risk/high-reward scenario,"
Levy said in an interview with B&C
Wednesday. "We feel that these four shows will help not only keep the audience
that we are building over this summer but hopefully expand it."
American
Digger, picked up for 13 episodes, follows relic hunter Ric Savage and his
team who convince homeowners to let them dig up their property in search of
buried artifacts which they'll sell and spilt the profit.
Bounty hunter Tat-2 and his fugitive recovery
team are the focus of Big Easy Justice
as they hunt down the city's most elusive criminals. Spike has ordered 10
episodes of the series from Al Roker Entertainment in association with CRM
Entertainment, with Jennifer Lopez's Nuyorican Productions, and Bodega
Pictures.
Professional evictor Todd Howard confronts
out-of-control residents in World's Worst
Tenants, and Undercover Stings,
from the producers of Cops, rides
along on orchestrated busts and undercover police sting operations. Spike has
picked up both half-hour series for 10 episodes.
Spike has also renewed Repo Games, ordering an additional 20 episodes of the game show series
from executive producer Sally Ann Salsano. Repo
Games is averaging 1.1 million viewers and a 0.8 household rating in its first season that premiered in
April; season two will debut in 2012.
