Tomorrow will mark the start of a very interesting week of renewals and cancellations, so here are my final predictions for the fates of the remaining NBC shows. This post will be updated as the renewals and cancellations come in. *UPDATED 5/13 - CANCELLATIONS & NEW SHOWS ADDED *UPDATED 5/15 - RENEWALS & NEW SHOWS ADDED KEY
Per TV Series Finale, Undateable will not be returning for a 4th season. It's situation was quite unique over its run; despite a comedy 3 seasons in, it only produced 36 episodes. The first season aired in the summer double-pumped, and while steadily losing viewers grabbed a renewal for beating expectations. For lack of any other option, it aired after The Voice last spring for its second season to relatively underwhelming numbers, but managed a third season renewal as NBC's only returning comedy. Season 3 aired live on Fridays, though while steady, it was steady in fractional territory and NBC couldn't have been making a whole lot of money off of it considering its ad rate was one of the lowest on all of the Big 4.
What do you think of this news? Let us know in the comments below!
UPDATE: A writer on Undateable has stated that there is "no truth whatsoever" to this cancelation. I will keep providing updates, but it looks like TV Series Finale may have jumped the gun on this one. The original statement came from the newly released Variety bubble watch article which stated:
“Undateable” is dead, despite the network’s creative gamble on a fully live season for the most recent third round. Sources say the show was effectively cancelled last week with NBC giving a heads up to the cast and crew, though the official news may not come until upfronts."
We will keep you posted.
Show title (Average adults 18-49 rating to the nearest tenth / Most recent rating)
[F] - Indicates a Friday-night show, which will typically have lower ratings [O] - Indicates an NBC-owned show, which will typically have a higher chance at renewal
CANCELED
Heroes Reborn (1.3 / 1.0) [O]
The Player (0.8 / 0.8)
Truth Be Told (0.6 / 0.4) [F][O]
You, Me and the Apocalypse (0.7 / 0.6)
CERTAIN TO BE CANCELED
Crowded (1.1 / 0.8) [O]
Heartbeat (1.1 / 0.9)
Telenovela (1.0 / 0.9) [O]
Undateable (0.8 / 0.8) [F]
LIKELY TO BE CANCELED
The Mysteries of Laura (1.1 / 1.2)
ON THE BUBBLE
None
LIKELY TO BE RENEWED
The Carmichael Show (1.1 / 1.0)
CERTAIN TO BE RENEWED
None
RENEWED
The Blacklist (1.5 / 1.2)
Blindspot (2.0 / 1.3)
Chicago Fire (1.8 / 1.5) [O]
Chicago Med (1.8 / 1.5) [O]
Chicago P.D. (1.6 / 1.5) [O]
Grimm (0.9 / 1.0) [F][O]
Law & Order: SVU (1.7 / 1.4) [O]
Shades of Blue (1.2 / 1.1) [O]
Superstore (1.5 / 1.4) [O]
CROWDED VS. TELENOVELA VS. UNDATEABLE
With Superstore renewed and The Carmichael Show likely to be renewed, how much room does NBC have for another veteran comedy next season? It is clear that the network wants to expand its comedy department since they ordered a wide variety of new pilots for the upcoming season, but do they want to use more than two veteran comedies to help them do so? Crowded, Telenovela, and Undateable are the other three comedies that haven't yet been renewed or canceled, so could one or more of them be renewed? For the purpose of this article, let's pretend that only one of them can get the renewal. The question is, however, which one would it be? Take a look at my reasons for renewal for each show down below:
Crowded
Owned by NBC
Highest 18-49 average out of the three shows (although it has aired less episodes and not by very much)
Doing OK for its timeslot, Sundays at 9:30, which is arguably the toughest slot out of the three comedies and has the highest competition (The Walking Dead)
Directed by James Burrows, could be renewed just because of his name
Telenovela
Owned by NBC
Stars Eva Longoria, the network might want to keep on good terms with the high-profile star
Up for Emmy considerations
Has a cast of all Latinos (diversity and minorities are key on TV nowadays)
Undateable
The true "veteran" of the three shows (three seasons under its belt as opposed to one for the other two); closest to syndication
Aired on Friday nights; lower expectations
Very cheap production costs
Arguably the most consistent and reliable performer
* UPDATED ON (2/1/16) AT 4:19 ET W/ RENEWAL NEWS OF 'CHICAGO MED' AND 'LAW & ORDER: SVU'
Hello everyone, it's Luke Lambright. Welcome to week 19 of the NBC Renew/Cancel Watch for the 2015-2016 television season. Find out where your favorite show stands for renewal or cancellation down below: KEY
Show title (Average adults 18-49 rating to the nearest tenth / Most recent rating)
[F] - Indicates a Friday night show, which will typically have lower-than-average ratings
CANCELED
Heroes Reborn (1.3 / 1.0)
The Player (0.8 / 0.8)
Truth Be Told (0.6 / 0.4) [F]
CERTAIN TO BE CANCELED
NONE
LIKELY TO BE CANCELED
The Mysteries of Laura (1.1 / 1.2)
Telenovela (1.0 / 0.9)
Undateable (0.8 / 0.8) [F]
You, Me and the Apocalypse (1.2 / 1.2)
ON THE BUBBLE
Grimm (0.9 / 0.8) [F]
LIKELY TO BE RENEWED
Shades of Blue (1.5 / 1.3)
CERTAIN TO BE RENEWED
Superstore (1.6 / 1.5)
RENEWED
The Blacklist (1.5 / 1.6)
Blindspot (2.3 / 1.9)
Chicago Fire (1.8 / 1.8)
Chicago Med (1.9 / 1.7)
Chicago P.D. (1.6 / 1.5)
Law & Order: SVU (1.7 / 1.7)
ANALYSIS
Undateable: Undateable wrapped up its third season on Friday with a one-hour season finale, scoring a 0.8 rating which is in-line with its season average. Although it is NBC's most venerable comedy, I still have Undateable listed as "likely to be canceled" because of a few reasons. First, its ratings are pretty dismal, even for a Friday night. NBC's freshman sitcom Superstore doubles the ratings of Undateable and will most likely become the network's new veteran comedy to try and build from in the future. Undateable is no longer needed, ESPECIALLY if The Carmichael Show performs even OK this Spring. Second, Undateable isn't owned by NBC. The network doesn't care about getting this show to syndication because it won't make them any money after it is done airing. Now that NBC has some in-house comedy hits (Superstore and The Carmichael Show), their focus will now be to get these shows to be hits and into syndication. All of the effort to get Undateable to be a hit has now vanished. Last, and definitely the most concerning, the season 3 finale that aired on Friday (Read Hunter's review of it by clicking here) was written like a SERIES finale. This shows me that it is possible NBC has already secretly canceled the series and told the writers to write a proper ending to the show (which was the correct thing to do for the fans of the show if this is actually the case). Is there a chance we will be seeing Undateable next season? Yes. Is it likely? No.
You, Me and the Apocalypse: NBC's freshman comedy-drama (which has finished airing in the UK and is already all over the internet to watch) opened up to a modest 1.2 rating on Thursday night. It did improve upon the previous-couple airings of Heroes Reborn, but will most likely become fractional in a few weeks and, on average, perform even worse than Heroes. I'm going to start off this series as "likely to be canceled," but don't be surprised to see it as "certain" in the coming weeks. Grimm: Grimm returned to a 0.8 rating this week (pending final adjustments) for its winter premiere, but I am still keeping it on the bubble for now. It is owned by NBC, which definitely helps its chances, and has been a venerable player on NBC's Friday nights for many years. However, 0.8 is the lowest it can go to stay on the bubble. If it drops to a 0.7, expect to see Grimm as "likely to be canceled." Telenovela: This week marks the week when Telenovela finally went fractional at a 0.9 rating. And with that, I have decided to move the show down to "likely to be canceled." NBC is doing just fine with Superstore and has a plethora of new comedies being developed for the 2016-2017 season, so they don't need the dud known as Telenovela dragging down their efforts to finally launch successful comedies again. Is there a chance we will be seeing Telenovela next season? Yep! Is it likely? Nope, not anymore!
Hello everyone, it's Luke! Welcome to the third NBC Renew/Cancel Watch of 2016! Check out my predictions below and look out for a very interesting poll at the bottom of the page! It has been a hot topic lately and I encourage all of you to discuss it in the comments! KEY
Show title (Average adults 18-49 rating to the nearest tenth / Most recent rating)
[F] - Indicates a Friday night show, which will typically have lower-than-average ratings
CANCELED
Heroes Reborn (1.3 / 1.0)
The Player (0.8 / 0.8)
Truth Be Told (0.6 / 0.4) [F]
CERTAIN TO BE CANCELED
NONE
LIKELY TO BE CANCELED
The Mysteries of Laura (1.1 / 1.2)
Undateable (0.8 / 0.8) [F]
ON THE BUBBLE
Grimm (0.9 / 0.9) [F]
Telenovela (1.1 / 1.1)
LIKELY TO BE RENEWED
Shades of Blue (1.5 / 1.4)
Superstore (1.6 / 1.7)
CERTAIN TO BE RENEWED
Chicago Med (1.9 / 1.6)
Law & Order: SVU (1.7 / 1.7)
RENEWED
The Blacklist (1.5 / 1.6)
Blindspot (2.3 / 1.9)
Chicago Fire (1.9 / 1.8)
Chicago P.D. (1.6 / 1.5)
ANALYSIS
Superstore: With a strong 1.7 rating on Monday, up from the 1.5 rating of the previous airing, there is now no question that Superstore is a likely renewal. Be ready to see this freshman sitcom on NBC's 2016/2017 schedule! The real question is, however, where are they going to put it? Telenovela: Telenovela rose up to a 1.1 rating this Monday, which I think is enough for it to remain on the bubble. NBC is still airing a good amount of ads for this show, which shows me they still have faith in it, so don't count on a cancellation just yet. Shades of Blue: Shades of Blue also rose this week, up to a 1.4 from last week's 1.3 rating. I don't like leaving shows on the bubble for too long, so I decided to finally make a decision on this show. I am labeling Shades as "likely to be renewed" FOR NOW, but note that this could easily change once How to Get Away with Murder returns on February 11. (Both shows share the same time slot and, most likely, a good amount of the same audience).
QUESTION OF THE WEEK
Choose the day above in the poll and leave your time slot and reasoning in the comments below!
