In one broad and rather impressively all-encompassing stroke, The CW renewed its entire Fall 2014 lineup on Sunday (January 11) morning.
Earning places in the 2015-2016 schedule are “Supernatural” (Season 11), “The Vampire Diaries” (Season 7), “Arrow” (Season 4), “The 100” (Season 3), “Reign” (Season 3), “The Originals” (Season 3), “The Flash” (Season 2) and “Jane the Virgin” (Season 2).
Of those renewals, only “Reign” can probably be considered a “surprise,” as the period drama has struggled on Thursdays for two seasons and was already a slightly unexpected renewal when it got an early pickup last year. “The Flash” has been a breakout smash this year and joins “Arrow” and “The Vampire Diaries” as foundation dramas. “The Originals” has performed decently as a self-starter on Mondays this year, while “Supernatural” has been unkillable regardless of its myriad time periods. “The 100” has a passionate fanbase and a reservoir of critical support, while “Jane the Virgin” has received some of the network's best-ever reviews and is up for a pair of big Golden Globes on Sunday night.
The CW's Entertainment President Mark Pedowitz said that the eight pickups will guarantee that The CW has returning shows for fall, midseason and summer of the 2015-2016.
The network also has new seasons of “Penn & Teller: Fool Us,” “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” and “America's Next Top Model” for later dates.
Note that The CW's renewals only apply to Fall 2014 shows.
“Hart of Dixie,” which had a one-off December premiere, returns to its Friday home starting next week. While there have been some assumptions that this will be its last season, Pedowitz says that that decision has not been officially made.
Also in semi-limbo is “Beauty and the Beast” which was a renewal shocker last May, but wasn't in the midseason schedule announced on Sunday. “Beauty and the Beast” will likely premiere in late-May or early-June, making it a harder to gauge its future hopes.
New midseason dramas “The Messenger” and “iZombie” will also have their futures determined by spring performance.