The aftershow genre is drawing more networks eager to offer fans more exposure to their favorite hit series — and on more platforms, too.

Network executives said aftershows — the best-known of which is AMC’s live post-The Walking Dead panel show Talking Dead — are a relatively easy way to create original content that serves the big audiences for hit shows, especially in the fantasy and sci-fi realms, at a fraction of the cost.

Syfy is the latest network to dive in, launching a weekly Tuesday night podcast to support the second season of time-travel drama series 12 Monkeys, which launches tonight (April 18). The Talking Monkeys podcast, to be made available at Syfy.com and in the iTunes Store, will feature series creator and executive producer Terry Matalas and cast members discuss the show’s most recent episode.

The goal of Talking Monkeys is to reach 12 Monkeys fans online, Matthew Chiavelli, senior vice president of Syfy Digital, said.

“The 12 Monkeys audience has proven to be ravenous consumers of any of the ancillary digital content that Syfy has created since the show’s premiere last year -- so we saw this as an ideal series to launch a podcast,” Chiavelli said. “12 Monkeys, being a multilayered show with deep, rich storytelling, is perfect for this medium that allows for longer-form discussion.”

Talking Monkeys joins several other after-show series debuting in April. AMC tonight (April 18) will air a live Talking Saul aftershow following the season-two finale of drama series Better Call Saul. The network first aired Talking Saul, hosted by Talking Dead’s Chris Hardwick, after the show’s second season premiere on Feb. 15.

Speaking of Talking Dead, AMC on April 10 launched the series for the second-season premiere of zombie series Fear The Walking Dead, a spinoff of the cable’s top rated series The Walking Dead. A week prior, the Talking Dead that followed TWD’s season-six finale averaged 7.9 million viewers (on a Nielsen-plus-3-day basis). While that was a big drop-off from the 14.1 million viewers who watched The Walking Dead, it was a big enough audience to make the series the fifth-most-watched show of the week, Nielsen reported.

Crossing platforms again, HBO tapped Grantland founder Bill Simmons to create an on demand aftershow for Game of Thrones. After the Thrones will appear on HBO Now, HBO Go and HBO On Demand the Monday after each new Sunday-night Game of Thrones episode, starting April 25.

Last Thursday (April 14) BBC America launched the first after show based on its hit series Orphan Black. After the Black features hosts Ajay Fry, Morgan Hoffman and Teddy Wilson discussing the plot hints and twists of the sci-fi series’ fourth season.

BBC America president and general manager Sarah Barnett said the aftershow allows the network to superserve its Orphan Black viewer fanbase.

“These shows have a raw, unfiltered feeling of true access to talent both in front of and behind the camera — and given how central TV is to pop culture this fuels the conversation in such an organic way,” Barnett said. “What’s more, it’s the most relevant lead out possible to follow a new episode of Orphan Black.” And, she noted, “it’s relatively cost effective.”

“It’s passion, cloned,” Barnett said, playing off the multiple cloned characters Orphan Black star Tatiana Maslany plays. “It’s a virtuous circle of feeding and fueling fan love for our show.”  

HBO will team with Bill Simmons to create a new Game of Thrones after-show to debut after each episode of the series.

The After The Thrones series will air Mondays on HBO NOW, HBO GO and HBO ON Demand, a day after each new episode of the series airs beginning with the series' return on April 24, said network officials. It’s unclear when After The Thrones will air on the liner HBO channel.

After The Thrones, which will recap the latest episode of the popular fantasy series, will be executively produced by Grantland founder and sports pundit Bill Simmons, who last year signed a multi-year, multiplatform with HBO to produce content.

Andy Greenwald and Chris Ryan from Simmons’ new content site The Ringer will host the series, said HBO.

ESPN is dropping its online news/sports service Grantland, five months after the departure of the service’s founder Bill Simmons.

ESPN said in a statement that it is “suspending the publication of Grantland’ effective immediately, adding that it will direct it time and energy “toward projects that we believe will have a broader and more significant impact across our enterprise.”

Grantland was launched in 2011 by Simmons, who left ESPN in May after the sports network did not renew his contract. Two months later Simmons signed a multi-year, multi-platform agreement with HBO.

The rest of ESPN’s statement reads as follows:

“Grantland distinguished itself with quality writing, smart ideas, original thinking and fun.  We are grateful to those who made it so.  Bill Simmons was passionately committed to the site and proved to be an outstanding editor with a real eye for talent.  Thanks to all the other writers, editors and staff who worked very hard to create content with an identifiable sensibility and consistent intelligence and quality. We also extend our thanks to Chris Connelly who stepped in to help us maintain

ESPN has made headlines recently over the departure of high-profile talent and a net loss of subscribers in a very competitive and evolving television marketplace.

Yet, as it enters the second half of 2015, the programmer’s position as the unquestioned leader in sports television doesn’t seem to be in jeopardy of collapsing anytime soon, even if its sturdy foundation may show a crack or two.

There’s no doubt ESPN took a PR hit with the recent loss of high-profile — and high-priced — personalities in Bill Simmons, Keith Olbermann and Colin Cowherd. Several reports have framed the losses as cost-cutting measures. Company president John Skipper, during the network’s upfront presentation this past May, said as much about Simmons, who will now host a weekly sports show on HBO.

In a TV environment where traditional advertising and affiliate-fee revenue sources are challenged by new platforms and the evolving way consumers access and view television, it would be foolhardy for any cable or broadcast network not to continuously evaluate how it conducts its business. ESPN is no exception.

ESPN’s virtual DVR-proof live sports programing continues to draw viewers, though. ESPN finished fifth among all cable networks in primetime second-quarter ratings, according to Nielsen, although its 1.5 million average audience was down 11% year-over-year. All but one of the four cable networks ahead of it also posted a ratings drop, though. The return of college and pro football should help ESPN continue its perennial run as cable’s fourth-quarter primetime ratings king.

The company also is investing in the digital present and future with digital services WatchESPN and ESPN3, and has signed onto Dish Network’s over-the-top Sling TV service.

There’s no question that ESPN, along with the rest of the TV industry, faces challenges adjusting to a changing marketplace. But for now, it seems a stretch to say that ESPN is struggling to score points just because it has decided to punt the ball a couple of times.

Two years after returning to ESPN, network host Keith Olbermann is leaving again.

Olbermann, who hosted the talk show Olbermann on ESPN2, will leave when his contract expires in July, according to reports.

ESPN in a statement said: “Keith is a tremendous talent who has consistently done timely, entertaining and thought-provoking work since returning to ESPN. While the show’s content was distinctive and extremely high quality, we ultimately made a business decision to move in another direction. We wish Keith nothing but the best and trust that his skill and ability will lead him to another promising endeavor.”

The often controversial Olbermann first joined ESPN in 1992 but left in 1997 to do more political commentary on networks such as MSNBC. Olbermann returned to ESPN in 2013.

Olbermann is the second high-profile personality to leave the network this year. This past May the network parted ways with Grantland editor Bill Simmons.

ESPN's recent decision to part with longtime network personality and writer Bill Simmons was based on a business decision and not any personal conflicts, ESPN network president John Skipper told reporters Tuesday after the network’s upfront event.

Skipper said the decision not to renew Simmons's contract was all “business, not personal,” but said  the decision did not come down to money.

Simmons, who lauched sports and entertainment website Grantland in 2011,  has been one of ESPN’s most popular personalities during his 15-year tenure, but has had several runs-in with ESPN executives during that time.

“He was at ESPN for 15 years and he did a fabulous job for us," Skipper said. "He re-invented at one point the way you do sports writing and became the most read sports writer in the history of the medium,” he said.

Skipper also weighed in on ESPN’s lawsuit last month against Verizon over the telco’s controversial Custom TV “skinny” bundle package, saying that the network is not against new technology but existing carriage agreements have to be renegotiated before any changes can be made.

“We’re in a dramatic time of technological change and clearly the way people consume video devices on different on different kinds of subscription packages is a dramatic transition,” he said. “We don’t resist the change; we do have contracts and it means that if you want to do things that are different you need to discuss it with us and we’ll have a conversation as we did with Sling TV."

Skipper also said the network’s decision to simulcast its NFL Wild Card game on ABC as well as the move of its longtime awards show The ESPY to the broadcast network was based in part on getting more exposure for the events on a bigger platform. “The Wild Card game is to get a bigger audience,” he said. “We’re going to become more opportunistic with ABC.”

Bill Simmons’ hoops hour will tip onto TV on Thursday night.

ESPN will bow The Grantland Basketball Hour on Thursday, Oct. 23, at 7 p.m. (ET). The initial Grantland-branded show will feature editor-in-chief Simmons and ESPN NBA analyst Jalen Rose. They will be joined by guests Michelle Beadle, the worldwide leader’s lead NBA game analyst Jeff Van Gundy and Los Angeles Clippers coach Doc Rivers. The five will size up an array of NBA topics ahead of the 2014-15 campaign before a studio audience at ESPN’s Los Angeles production center.

All told, there will be up to 18 one-hour primetime Grantland Basketball specials throughout the NBA season and The Finals. Additional episodes are planned for the NBA Draft and free-agency period.

“We are delighted to bring the Grantland brand to television – it's the natural evolution for our site and for everything Jalen and I have been doing on our video channel,” Simmons said in a release. “We want to be creative, we want to be unpredictable and we want to stand out.”

In addition to airing on ESPN, the show will encore on ESPN2 and ABC, with segments also featured on Grantland.com and integrated within ESPN platforms, including SportsCenter. Thursday’s premiere episode will re-air on ABC on Saturday, Oct., 25 at 2 p.m.

Following a suspension, Simmons was recently reinstated to ESPN following critical remarks he made about NFL commissioner Roger Goodell stemming from the Rice Ray domestic violence incident.

While Grantland makes the jump to TV, Simmons’ seat on the NBA Countdown roster will remain empty this year as ESPN/ABC will go with a primary three-person team of Sage Steele, Doug Collins and Rose on Fridays and Sundays.

The trio of ESPN NBA insider Doris Burke and analysts Avery Johnson and Rose will return for their second Countdown campaign on Wednesdays.

ESPN has suspended Grantland editor Bill Simmons after he called NFL commissioner Roger Goodell a “liar” for his handling of the Ray Rice domestic violence mess during a profanity-laden Sept. 22 BS podcast.

Simmons, who was suspended last year for critical comments about ESPN's debate show First Take, will be out for three weeks this time round.

“I just think not enough is being made out of the fact that they knew about the tape and they knew what was on it. Goodell, if he didn’t know what was on that tape, he’s a liar," Simmons said. "I’m just saying it, he is lying. I think that dude is lying. If you put him up on a lie detector test, that guy would fail. For all these people to pretend they didn’t know, is such f*#@)^%g bullshit. It really is. It’s such f*#@)^%g bullshit. For him to go on the press conference and pretend otherwise, I was so insulted.”

Goodell held a press conference in New York on Sept. 19.

Simmons also challenged ESPN -- which is the NFL's largest rights payor, allocating some $1.9 billion annually for Monday Night Football, highlights and other league-related content -- to take action for his remarks about Goodell, noting "I really hope somebody calls me or emails me and says I’m in trouble."

ESPN issued the following statement on Wednesday evening: “Every employee must be accountable to ESPN and those engaged in our editorial operations must also operate within ESPN’s journalistic standards. We have worked hard to ensure that our recent NFL coverage has met that criteria. Bill Simmons did not meet those obligations in a recent podcast, and as a result we have suspended him for three weeks.”

Simmons is the second member of ESPN's talent corps to be suspended over the Ray Rice matter. In July, Stephen A. Smith lost a week over comments on First Take in which he said women sometimes precipitate domestic violence reactions.

No longer a member of ESPN’s NBA Countdown pre- and post-game, Simmons is scheduled to tip off The Grantland Basketball Show next month.

Grantland, the ESPN-owned sports and pop culture site founded by Editor-in-chief Bill Simmons, is making its first foray into television with The Grantland Basketball Show. 

Simmons will leave his current post with NBA Countdown to serve as host of the series, which will air on ESPN throughout the 2014-15 NBA season. The hour-long series will debut on Tuesday, October 21 at 8 p.m. ET. 

ESPN has scheduled 18 episodes to air in the primetime slot throughout the season, including eight episodes during the NBA Playoffs and Finals and additional episodes during events such as the NBA Draft. 

"We're thrilled that Bill will continue to have a presence as part of ESPN's NBA television efforts. The nature of The Grantland Basketball Show schedule will allow Bill to stay connected to the sport he loves, while focusing on his other priorities, including the successful Grantland site and the acclaimed 30 for 30 series," said John Wildhack, executive vice president, production and programming, in a statement. 

Simmons also serves as co-executive producer for 30 for 30, the documentary series which also airs on ESPN. The Grantland Basketball Show is produced by the network's new production company Exit 31.