There are casual ways to lock down your hits and look to the future.
FOX ordered a second season for “Sleepy Hollow” early in the fall, while NBC did the same for “The Blacklist” just a couple months later. FOX ordered two seasons of “Glee” last spring, a deal it may be regretting as “Glee” ratings find new ways to crater each week.
But when it comes to looking forward, those three renewals all look like child's play compared to what CBS did for “The Big Bang Theory” on Tuesday (March 12).
CBS has announced that “The Big Bang Theory” has been renewed for three additional years, carrying the Thursday comedy through the 2016-2017 season. The deal will carry “The Big Bang Theory,” currently in its seventh season, through season 10.
“Comedy is a big part of our schedule, and 'The Big Bang Theory' is the biggest comedy force on television,” blurbs Nina Tassler, Chairman, CBS Entertainment. “This multi-year deal further strengthens our network”s position for future seasons and marks another chapter in the great partnership CBS enjoys with Warner Bros. Television for delivering audiences the best in comedy. We”re proud to work with and showcase the incredible talents of Chuck Lorre, Steve Molaro and this amazing cast every week.”
Writing about “The Big Bang Theory” on the Internet will inevitably bring out angry “Community” and “Parks and Recreation” fans who swear they don't know a soul who watches “BBT,” while everybody they know watches hipper, edgier comedies. That doesn't change the fact that, using some DVR wiggling, “The Big Bang Theory” averages 19.79 million viewers weekly, including a 6.1 rating among adults 18-49. Not only is “The Big Bang Theory” TV's most-watched comedy, a crown it has held since the 2010-2011 season, but “Big Bang Theory” repeats on CBS would easily be TV's second most-watched comedy. This will also be the comedy's second straight season as TV's top comedy in the 18-49 demographic.
In addition, “Big Bang Theory” has won a pair of Television Critics Association Awards for Outstanding Achievement in Comedy, while star Jim Parsons is a three-time Emmy winner.
A three-season renewal sounds like a lot, but one wonders how long ABC, FOX, NBC or The CW would want to lock up any show averaging nearly 20 million viewers.
Excited? Enraged? Impressed? Whatever?