NBC's 2012-13 fall schedule revealed

The Voice in the fall! Comedy on four weeknights! Community and Whitney on Fridays! Rock Center with Brian Williams somehow still on the air! NBC has just released its fall schedule. (Below).

“We’ve taken a few first steps toward a turnaround over this past season and now we’re seeing a real opportunity to accelerate that process,” said NBC entertainment chairman Robert Greenblatt. “We’ve got a lineup of new shows that will really get people to sit up and take notice. And with the Olympics coming this summer and two nights of The Voice in the fall, we’ve also got the tools we need to give our shows the kind of launch they deserve.”

The Voice will not only air in the fall, but will have another spring cycle as well — doubling down on the music competition for the first time and setting the stage for a X Factor vs. The Voice rivalry in a few months (especially if Christina Aguilera returns as a Voice judge and Britney Spears is officially announced as an X Factor judge, as expected). Greenblatt told reporters on a conference call Sunday that he also plans to add the ever-popular spinning chairs from the audition phase into the battle rounds, though wouldn’t reveal further details on that change. (Fox’s fall schedule is here).

Asked about the fate of NBC’s returning comedies, Greenblatt said that, contrary to what’s been widely reported, this is not necessarily the final season of 30 Rock. In fact, none of the NBC comedies, including the modestly rated titles picked up for only 13 episodes, are automatically going into their final season. “As they age [ordering a final season is] something you look at each year, but we haven’t definitively said that to any of them yet,” Greenblatt said. (Details about Community‘s move to Fridays here).

As for The Office, which has been rocked by departures both certain (co-star James Spader, showrunner Paul Lieberstein) and uncertain (Rainn Wilson leaving for the spinoff? Cast members haggling contracts?) the network chief said he expects the entire cast to return except Mindy Kaling, who’s starring in a new comedy on Fox that’s produced by NBC’s studio. Plus, “Expect some new faces to drop in,” Greenblatt said.

Another headline coming out of the announcement was that musical drama Smash is being held for midseason (along with new dramas Infamous and Hannibal and new comedies Save Me, 1600 Penn and Next Caller). Asked by EW.com about Smash‘s creative direction for its second season now that Gossip Girl writer Josh Safran is taking the showrunner reins, Greenblatt said, “[Safran] has a real passion for this world and he’s a really smart and sophisticated writer. He’s going to raise the bar for us. I do think we’re going to do a better job of arcing really interesting and complex serialized stories.”

There’s also a ton of unscripted shows waiting in the wings, including returning titles The Celebrity Apprentice, Fashion Star, The Biggest Loser and Betty White’s Off Their Rockers, plus newcomers Stars Earn Stripes, Howie Mandel’s White Elephant, Ready for Love and Surprise with Jenny McCarthy.  

The below schedule doesn’t have premiere dates yet. Greenblatt confirmed, however, that you can expect NBC to take advantage of its Summer Olympics coverage to launch some of these shows earlier than the usual late-September premiere week.

RELATED: NBC’s new fall trailers are up!Your fall TV resource is here! The complete schedule for Fox, NBC, ABC, CBS and The CW is below. Marvel at the broadcast’s lineup grid-y goodness, admire its artful feng shui. And if want to know our predictions for who will win certain time-period battles, see our story here.