‘Hart of Dixie’ season 4: The latest premiere date speculation and more

When will “Hart of Dixie” season 4 premiere? This is something that we’ve discussed time and time again over the past few months, but with the lineup for The CW starting up tonight, this seems to be a good time to revisit the question.

The one thing that we know for sure is this: It is extremely unlikely that we will return to BlueBell anytime in 2014. We are already in October, and unless “Jane the Virgin” is an enormous flop, they will likely let it air most of its initial run even if the ratings are low. This means that, unless the network just wanted to bury the show somewhere, there will not be a place for the show on the schedule until the new year. (We feel like “The Flash” is assured to at least get its first 13 episodes based on some of the hype surrounding the show alone.)

From here, though, things get interesting. There could be a spot for “Hart of Dixie” on Friday nights in the new year thanks to “America’s Next Top Model” finishing, but do you put the show there? The tricky thing with doing that is that you’re basically throwing expectations out the window. This will likely depend on the performance of some new shows.

There are also two other factors to consider here, and those come in the form of “The Messengers” and “iZombie.” The CW is likely to set the premieres of these shows pretty early in the new year, as well. With this in mind, our guess is that “Hart of Dixie” probably will be again a Friday show, and will either air in January or March. One other factor here is what The CW wants to do with “Beauty and the Beast.” If they want to air it in the spring, they’ll probably run “Hart of Dixie” in January, and then air the Kristin Kreuk series starting in March in the same timeslot. Personally, though, we prefer “Beauty and the Beast” in the summer. Its ratings were better there.

There are only ten episodes for the Rachel Bilson show this year as a result of her pregnancy, but don’t let the count fool you: This is not necessarily the show’s final season.

What do you want to see on the fourth season of “Hart of Dixie”? Be sure to share your thoughts with a comment, and head over here to get some further updates related to the show right now. Also, you can sign up today if you want to get some further TV updates on all we cover via our CarterMatt Newsletter.

Photo: The CW