Why High Potential is not on tonight, October 1

Kaitlin Olson in High Potential
Kaitlin Olson in High Potential (Image credit: Disney/Carlos Lopez-Calleja)

High Potential, the new ABC crime show starring Kaitlin Olson, has been one of the big new hits of the fall TV season. But fans looking to tune into the next episode should know that there will not be a new episode of High Potential on Tuesday, October 1. So why is High Potential episode 3 not airing this week? It's no great mystery: ABC is airing the vice presidential debate between JD Vance and Tim Walz on October 1 instead.

The first, and at this time only, debate scheduled between Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance and Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz is set to begin live at 9 pm ET/6 pm PT. Though the debate is being hosted by CBS News, ABC (and the other major networks Fox and NBC) are simulcasting the debate live on their network. ABC's has two hours blocked out specifically for the debate, which runs into High Potential's usual 10 pm runtime. Debate coverage begins on ABC at 8 pm ET/5 pm PT, which is also impacting another ABC Tuesday night show, Dancing with the Stars season 33.

So no High Potential this week, but when can fans expect the show to return? The good news is this doesn't look to be an extended break, as High Potential is set to air its next episode on Tuesday, October 8, once again at 10 pm ET/PT. Though a rerun of High Potential episode 2 is going to air on ABC Friday, October 4, at 8 pm ET/PT.

High Potential is based on the French TV series HPI (the first three seasons of which are currently streaming on Hulu). It follows Morgan Gillory (Olson), a struggling single mom with an IQ above 160 who goes from cleaning the Los Angeles Police Department's office to helping them solve cases when she shows an ability to spot things that the detectives miss. The series also stars Daniel Sunjata, Javicia Leslie, Deniz Akdeniz, Amirah J, Matthew Lamb and Judy Reyes.

In a reaction to High Potential, we praised Kaitlin Olson's performance, who truly shines in the lead role. That shouldn’t be a surprise as she has shown time and again her ability to shine on TV, including in It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia and Hacks.

If you haven't watched High Potential yet but are interested in trying the show out, you can watch the first two episodes on-demand on Hulu (subscription required), or you can read WTW's High Potential episode 1 and High Potential episode 2 recaps.

The vice presidential debate isn't the only special programming disrupting ABC's usual schedule this week. Fans of daytime television won't be getting General Hospital on Tuesday, October 1, Wednesday, October 2, and possibly Thursday, October 3, as the 2024 MLB playoffs have Wild Card games that air on ABC.

Again, new episodes of High Potential traditionally air on Tuesdays at 10 pm ET/PT on ABC, with episodes available to stream on Hulu on-demand the next day.

Michael Balderston

Michael Balderston is a DC-based entertainment and assistant managing editor for What to Watch, who has previously written about the TV and movies with TV Technology, Awards Circuit and regional publications. Spending most of his time watching new movies at the theater or classics on TCM, some of Michael's favorite movies include Casablanca, Moulin Rouge!, Silence of the Lambs, Children of Men, One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest and Star Wars. On the TV side he enjoys Only Murders in the Building, Yellowstone, The Boys, Game of Thrones and is always up for a Seinfeld rerun. Follow on Letterboxd.