Animal Planet, TLC shows coming to Hulu

Discovery Inc. rallied the most in almost four years after winning a deal to provide Hulu’s live video service with programming, an online breakthrough for the owner of the Animal Planet and HGTV cable channels.

As more consumers drop their expensive cable packages, media companies like Discovery have pushed to get their networks included in the growing number of online replacements, like Dish’s Sling TV, AT&T’s DirecTV Now and Hulu’s service. These new online-TV packages are recapturing many — but not all — of the lost subscribers and have helped stem some of the bleeding for channel owners who depend on subscriber fees for profits.

Under the agreement announced Wednesday, Silver Spring, Maryland-based Discovery will also provide old episodes of shows for Hulu’s on-demand library. Discovery owns a number of cable networks, including its namesake Discovery Channel, TLC and OWN. They air popular reality shows like “Property Brothers,” “Say Yes to the Dress” and “MythBusters.”

Last year, Discovery bought Scripps Networks Interactive Inc. for $11.9 billion, becoming a giant player in unscripted TV programming. Scripps’s main channels — HGTV, Food Network and Travel Channel — are on Hulu’s live TV service.

‘The Voice’ adds John Legend as coach

He mastered “Jesus Christ Superstar,” but is John Legend ready to tackle “John Legend ‘Voice’ Coach?”

That’s the question as NBC announced Wednesday that Legend, a newly crowned EGOT winner, will be joining “The Voice” as a coach in spring 2019 for the show’s 16th season.

“I’m thrilled to join the coaches of ‘The Voice,’” Legend said in a statement the network released. “I’ve been a guest and mentor on the show multiple times, and I’m so excited to discover talented singers and help them make the most of their gift. I hope the world is ready for #TeamJL.”

Legend is joining a lineup of coaches boasting Kelly Clarkson, Adam Levine and Blake Shelton. The “All of Me” singer is replacing Jennifer Hudson, who served as a coach in Season 13 and will return for Season 15, which will premiere Sept. 24.

Legend is one of the most decorated artists to serve as a coach in the show’s history. Legend won an Emmy on Sunday as a producer on “Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert,” a Tony in 2017 for co-producing a revival of August Wilson’s “Jitney,” an Oscar in 2015 for co-writing best song “Glory,” as well as amassing an astounding 10 Grammys throughout his career thus far.