After The CW renewed eight shows on Sunday, corporate sibling CBS had to at least try to compete at the TCA press tour on Monday (January 12).
While CBS' three Monday renewals couldn't match The CW's eight, all three CBS 2015-2016 pickups were for freshman shows, topping the two first-year dramas earning CW renewals.
CBS specifically picked up the season's top three most-watched new shows in “NCIS: New Orleans,” “Madam Secretary” and “Scorpion.”
“These freshman dramas have each made a big impact on key nights of the week,” blurbs Nina Tassler, Chairman, CBS Entertainment. “Creatively distinctive, the series are backed by strong showrunners with amazingly talented casts, and have resonated with a big, broad audience.”
For the season, including a variety of DVR numbers, “NCIS: New Orleans” is actually TV's second most watched drama overall, drawing 18.1 million viewers.
“Madam Secretary” has been averaging 14.9 million viewers for the season, boosting the time period average by 40 percent.
Providing an even bigger year-to-year time period bump is “Scorpion,” which has averaged 14.5 million viewers and boosted the Monday 9 p.m. average audience by 61 percent overall.
Somewhat conspicuously, then, CBS didn't renew “Stalker” or “The McCarthys,” its other two continuing new programs, though Tassler claimed that both are still in contention for 2015-2016.
“Ratings is always a factor,” Tassler said of the fortunes of “Stalker” (a regular winner in a sleepy time period) and “The McCarthys.” “We're going to see how the shows continue on the final half of this season. We're having season highs for so many of our shows. We're going to see how those shows play out for the second half of the season, and obviously, when we make those decisions, economics will be a factor as well.”
Are you excited for “NCIS: New Orleans,” “Madam Secretary” and “Katharine McPhee: Nerd Wrangler”?