Welcome to the first edition of New Show Power Rankings for the 2026-27 TV season. This column ranks the new broadcast scripted programs currently intended to air in the 2026-27 TV season by anticipated strength, linear ratings, and multi-platform ratings. A show's anticipated renewal or cancelation odds is disregarded for the purpose of this column. Let us know what you think in the comments!
Hardly anything is known about Grey's Anatomy's upcoming spinoff, other than that it's set in Texas, co-created by Shonda Rhimes, a medical drama, and slated to premiere on ABC's midseason 2027 schedule. Neither a name nor a log line have been announced. The show was ordered straight-to-series without so much of a script in anyone's hands.
The fact ABC has already announced an intent to get a show on the schedule tells me this will be their pick for the post-Super Bowl time slot. Grey's Anatomy will either wrap its season early or change time slots, and this spinoff will pick up after 9-1-1 and 9-1-1: Nashville. The Texas setting replicates that of 9-1-1: Lone Star, which did not make the transition from FOX to ABC with the mother series.
Whether "Grey's Anatomy: Lone Star" is a long-term success or not, this will garner early buzz that is bound to continue throughout its abbreviated first season. Of course, that's only if my post-Super Bowl time slot assessment is correct. Also, the Super Bowl will be simulcast on both ABC and ESPN this year, so ABC's lead-out will likely not see quite the sampling as previous lead-outs.
2. The Intterrogation
Like the upcoming Grey's Anatomy spinoff, The Interrogation is ranked so high because of an anticipated cushy premiere time slot. FOX will almost certainly premiere either this or Baywatch after the NFC Championship Game in January 2027. I'm heavily leaning toward it being this upcoming spy drama, which will greatly help launch the series.
3. Einstein
CBS is either waiting for the absolute perfect time to premiere Einstein, or have simply decided they really do not want to air this show. This was actually ordered to series as a pilot, despite what it may seem. It's most likely that Einstein nabs the post-AFC Championship time slot in January 2027, and it becomes a midseason priority for the network. Streaming on Paramount+, it doesn't have quite the ceiling that an ABC or FOX drama do on that end.
4. The Rookie: North
The Rookie: North is ABC's second attempt at a spinoff of police procedural The Rookie, and the first since the long-running drama took on new life on social media and Hulu/Disney+. The Rookie: North has a much greater chance at success than the ill-fated The Rookie: Feds, but it will need to take the Super Bowl lead-in away from the Grey's Anatomy spinoff in order to out-rank it here.
5. NCIS: New York
The LL Cool J-starring NCIS: New York is CBS's attempt to build up an all-NCIS night that is actually competitive in the ratings. While NCIS is still strong, spinoff Origins and Sydney are limping through their runs, and streaming original Tony and Ziva was canceled after one season. I would have been much more confident in this show a few years ago, but it's still a safe pick to at least have solid linear viewership.
6. Cupertino
Whereas NCIS: New York will likely be relying on linear for its success, Cupertino will have to rely almost entirely on streaming. Its time slot on CBS is downright terrible, to the point where it would be a miracle if it isn't their lowest-rated scripted show in Live + Same Day in the fall. However, Cupertino is the latest drama from Michelle and Robert King, who have consistently delivered shows that have found an audience on Paramount+ (most recently, Elsbeth). This is the type of show that could rack up 9 million viewers in Multiplatform + 7 with a 0.12 Adults 18-49 Live + Same Day rating. Unlike NCIS: New York, I'd be much lower on this show a few years ago.
7. The Traitors: New Blood
Given how popular The Traitors is on Peacock, it was only a matter of time before a broadcast-friendly version was developed for NBC. The Traitors: New Blood is a civilian version of the popular competition series, in a move opposite to the one NBC is making with The Voice. Regardless of how it does on NBC, it should find enough of an audience on Peacock to be one of the greater successes of the season.
8. Line of Fire
NBC is still trying to launch new dramas in the Mondays at 10 pm time slot, with their latest attempt being the family action thriller drama Line of Fire. If they think Line of Fire will ride The Voice's popularity, they are mistaken. Still, as the network's lone new drama premiere, it has a good chance to find an audience on Peacock and make up for this antiquated scheduling move.
9. Sunset P.I.
Sunset P.I. is NBC's new private investigator workplace comedy, and will premiere midseason 2027. It hails from creators Dan Goor and Luke Del Tredici, who were both executive producers on Brooklyn Nine-Nine (Goor was also showrunner and co-creator). Brooklyn Nine-Nine was hardly ever a linear ratings success, and was a downright flop when its final season was essentially burned off in 2020, but it's gained a core following that will allow NBC to have an easy time advertising Sunset P.I. This could easily find an audience, whether it be on NBC or Peacock.
10. The Rockford Files
Unlike some of the shows listed above it, The Rockford Files is suited for broadcast television. The original series was a Friday night staple in the 1970s on NBC. However, this version of The Rockford Files likely will not see Friday nights, given the fall sitcom hour doesn't premiere until late October, and Dateline NBC takes up the remaining two hours of the night. This might not be the most popular new show of the 2026-27 TV season, but it should do servicably.
11. Eternally Yours
CBS's new vampire comedy from the showrunners of Ghosts will premiere this fall in Ghosts' former time slot. Instead of being paired up with Ghosts, it's sending the popular comedy to the bench and will air with Elsbeth as a lead-out. CBS is clearly hoping Eternally Yours recaptures the success of Ghosts, but it that may be tough to do without having Ghosts launch it. CBS also has not had luck with their comedies on Paramount+ recently, with the canceled Poppa's House and DMV among the least-viewed CBS originals. Granted, DMV premiered well, and there's a solid chance Eternally Yours does the same.
12. The Voice: Celebrity
NBC is in a bit of a conundrum: The Voice is in desperate need of a rest, but they don't really have the means to let it take one. Their attempted answer is The Voice: Celebrity, which is technically the 31st season of The Voice but will have a new host, new coaches, and celebrity participants. Maybe this is the thing that saves The Voice, the way The Celebrity Apprentice extended The Apprentice at its lowest. More likely, it just acts as another spring cycle of The Voice, rating decently enough on NBC and Peacock to keep returning, but not good enough to return to the behemoth it used to be.
13. Baywatch
FOX is incredibly high on Baywatch, because they have apparently already forgotten about Rescue: HI-Surf. I'm banking on this not getting the NFC Championship Game as a lead-out, though a Sunday premiere is still likely. If I'm wrong, Baywatch and The Interrogator could swap spots in these rankings. But this IP was subject to a panned 2017 movie remake, and the original run on NBC was canceled after its first season before making a comeback as a syndicated series. Again, Baywatch lives in a universe where FOX is trying to have a do-over on Rescue: HI-Surf.
14. Newlyweds
NBC's new multi-cam sitcom Newlyweds will air on Fridays in the fall, paired up with Happy's Place. It stars real-life couple Teá Leoni and Tim Daly, two actors who first met on the set of CBS's political drama Madam Secretary. Newlyweds is looking like a sacrificial lamb in the name of keeping Happy's Place on the schedule, something that's doing good enough to stick around but not good enough to properly launch a show. That ranks Newlyewds in dead last among new scripted shows on the Big Four.
15. Wordle
Coming midseason to NBC is a game show based on the popular online word game Wordle. This will likely go about as well as CBS's attempt to adapt Candy Crush.
16. Marriage Market
FOX's sole announced unscripted pickup for 2026-27 is the dating series Marriage Market. Just as we get used to them keeping around a dating show called Farmer Wants A Wife, they do this.
17. NXT Premium Live Events
The bottom three slots in these rankings all go to The CW's new series orders. The highest-ranked of these three is NXT Premium Live Events, which lives in the WWE NXT universe. WWE NXT is The CW's highest-rated series, beyond college football and the occasional Sunday night movie. While I don't expect this to unlock The CW's full potential, it should comfortably stay away from 0.00s in the Live + Same Day Adults 18-49 demo.
18. Private Eyes West Coast
The popular Canadaian detective comedy-drama Private Eyes is getting its own spinoff over five years after it concluded. Titled Private Eyes West Coast, it will air on The CW in the United States. This is at least an upgrade from where the original series aired in the US (Ion Plus). Most likely, Private Eyes West Coast will be Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent all over again. That's not a terrible scenario for The CW, but it's far from competitive with the Big Four.
19. The Great American Road Rally: Celebrity Edition
The CW's newest unscripted series sees celebrities driving down Route 66 to celebrate its 100th anniversary for the sake of charity. The network likely doesn't expect strong ratings out of it, as they cut down on costs in an age where their content is not attached to a major streaming service.