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UPDATES Wells Looking For New ‘Southland’ Home
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NBC has axed Southland… I hear Trauma is next because of its ridiculouly excessive $3 million pricetag an episode. (When I screened the show, I was rooting for the helicopter to kill off every character…) My NBC insiders are letting Angela Bromstad off the hook, saying “she picked the best of shit” from Ben Silverman’s failed development. “This is the last gift that keeps on giving from Ben Silverman.” The insiders are even going so far as to give up on the rest of the primetime schedule for their network. “There’s nothing watchable the rest of the year.” Even midseason and spring of 2010? “Nothing watchable the rest of the season,” I’m told. “Maybe Jerry Seinfeld’s The Marriage Ref will work, but he’s not even in it. This is not a fun place to be right now. And we committed to Jay Leno on the air for 2 years because he was worried we’d have an itchy trigger finger. It’s an embarrassment for all of us. Maybe he’ll get fed up — he’s not right now — and then we can re-negotiate.” This is beyond sad. It’s the destruction of a brand.
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It was the only thing worth watching on NBC.. I hope another network picks it up. Long overdue for Zucker Head!!!
Southland was an okay show, but wasnt right for the line up. I think NBC made a WISE decision on this. They have a solid line up this year.
Stacey, what are you smoking? Ever since NBC put Leno in the 10 pm slot nothing is right for NBC’s line-up!
‘Southland’ is one of the best shows that I have seen in years (and there are a lot of great shows out there). NBC and all networks have no faith in the programs they launch, which is not wise. It’s the opposite of wise. It’s IDIOCY!
Jay Leno is a 1 trick pony and his show is the same as always. There is only 1 rivetting late night guy…a guy who is funny, who doesn’t need the same old predictable actors in the guest chair…a guy who doesn’t need a stack of cue cards but is original and and can get an audience going with just a look. Craig Ferguson….(and his puppets of course…).
I was pulling for Trauma… But as a Police Officer in Philly, I can’t get past the Hollywood bullshit (not true to life and a stretch for reality)
Southland, on the other hand is GREAT! Very true to life in SO many aspects. As a cop, watching cop shows is last on my “things to watch” list; then Southland came along. My favorite show!
NBC, you really, really, screwed this one up. You are now the Toyota of primetime. The news is the only thing going for ya.
Leno sucks
Trauma sucks
Southland… Great!
Where’s the solid line up, It’s no where that I can see.
Southland was good, although pretty dark and overly concerned with it’s characters, all of which are pretty well damaged goods.
They didn’t give it a chance and I think it will be picked up and will be successful.
NBC is run by a bunch of knuckleheads. Southland rocked! Leno sucks!!!
I just have to say, CBS’s Craig Ferguson is the man!
Wait, what?!
What the hell is WRONG with this network!??!? So they ax a show with critical acclaim AND an audience!?? The audience wasn’t HUGE but was bigger than anything they’ve introduced this year and kept building… I really think they are trying to kill NBC, like, on purpose.
Only person I’m really sad for is Derek Luke. A terrifically talented actor who just can’t seem to catch a break.
Derek Luke is an over-acting bore! He overdoes every single role given to him.
I enjoyed Mike Cudlitz. If the show’s not picked up I hope he shows up somewhere else.
That sucks. Maybe HBO will pick up Southland and I can get my fix there. Extra benefit – Southland would be a lot more realistic if they didn’t have to worry about language restrictions (who ever heard of a LA cop that doesn’t use profanity!?).
HBO has a full plate.
Sorry, just really wasn’t expecting the Southland cancellation. Killing Trauma is a no brainer, and Mercy must cost a pretty penny.
Thinking about it, other than Thursday nights, and even then it’s slim pickings, ratings wise, NBC really has nothing. No big rating, watercooler show.
Its going to take a miracle to have NBC turn it around in the next decade.
Ben Silverman needs to be rehired so he can be fired again.
And is there anything Zucker can do to warrant his dismissal? He’s the Teflon exec for reasons that are increasingly unjustifiable.
Nothing watchable? What about Parenthood? Clearly, it’s not going to save the network, but it’s got good buzz, doesn’t it?
I just think NBC is clueless. I’ve posted here before about Law & Order, which I thoroughly enjoy still, this new cast has seemed to reinvigorate the franchise, but instead of pushing it, NBC gives it no advertising and moves it to Fridays, probably to kill it off before Dick Wolf gets to 21 seasons. But the show IS watchable. The only viable drama on NBC. Maybe they think L&O already has its viewers and it’s a waste of time to advertise, but people here in NY didn’t even know when the season premiere was airing. Others I’ve talked to didn’t even know the show was still shooting. And their new content can’t keep up. I truly am worried for the fate of NBC. It is sad.
What in the hell have you indie slogs got against Jay Leno? From the crappy downer revue on the front page of the LA Times the morning following the show’s 10:00 start(from some news hen who must be on the take from CBS) to the continuing barage of snarky blather from a group of talking heads who should know better, the tone from people who should be supporting their ballsy fellow performer makes me susspect that hard feelings from the ill-advised writers strike have fogged what’s left of your tiny brains. If you want to have network shows to provide you work you’d better get real and let innovation take root.
You have got to be a Leno Shill. The show got 4.5 million viewers on Monday. In prime time. Those are cancellation type numbers. The show’s lost 80% of its viewers since the premiere. The “snarky blather” you reference is coming from the critics of the N.Y. Times, Los Angeles Times, TV Guide, USA Today., etc., etc. Go away, shill.
Bruce, seriously. Moving Jay to 10pm is not innovation. It’s shuffling the deck chairs on the Titanic. And it’s not about the network providing writers work, it’s about allowing the creative community to provide decent programming to an imagination deficient network.
Gee, do you think NBC will burn off the completed Southland episodes on Saturday nights next summer?
No surprise here…
“Southland” was one of NBC’s few bright spots in terms of programming — it deserved better treatment. NBC is a bigger disaster than the CW. It’s a shame.
I’ll bet dollars to donuts someone at NBC HQ is trying to figure out how to expand Jay’s show to two hours.
Destruction of the brand? The first Silverman brought us Sheriff Lobo and other mindless fare. The second did no better, but these things are so cyclical and success is only another season or executive away.
Don’t be so dramatic. All the network “brands” have suffered at the hands of the stronger, edgier product coming from FX, AMC, HBO, etc.
If memory is correct, HILL STREET BLUES was part of Fred Silverman’s tenure at NBC–debuting in early 1981.
Don’t forget – - – SUPER TRAIN! – - – A Love Boat knock off set on a luxury high-speed train.
Jay, c’mon. You’re the butt of jokes around the country because your show is so bad. Do you realize that in 2 years your network and staff will be completely demoralized? You’re not gonna turn it around this time. Throw in the towel. America is no longer laughing with you, they’re laughing at you.
Community is awesome. That’s all NBC has going for it.
Pity this seems to say “Chuck” in unwatchable.
While the Thursday night comedies are still creatively solid, the overnights have been terrifying.
Chuck is watchable. The insiders are really only referring to the new show slate than necessarily any of the shows that have already or will return from last year.
The only bright side to all of this is the ever-increasing likelihood that they’ll *have* to bring Chuck back a few weeks before Thanksgiving rather than after NBC has inevitably botched yet another Olympics that they would have botched anyway even had Silverman not torched the network.
The downside is extremely signifcant, denoting just how catastrophic the addition of The Jay Leno Show is to NBC’s network identity:
Since, the Law & Orders aside (grandfathered in simply because they’re phenomenons with too much clout), NBC feels that the first two hours of prime time are too early to show mature content like Southland that NBC would have otherwise aired at 10pm, NBC has by default become a network that’s openly hostile to airing mature content period.
So grown-ups need not try to create shows for NBC.
— Rob
NBC better hold on tight and push the living hell out of Community. It’s ratings are meager like everything else on NBC, but it has potential, certainly doesn’t cost a lot, and really could grow. If they played it up at least half as well as Fox has been constantly whoring the hell out of Glee, it would have some real viability. Otherwise, yeah, Silverman really left everyone at the Peacock with a steaming pile of shit to deal with.
The problem for ‘Community’ is that NBC moved it to 8pm. Who puts a freshman show on a 8pm? At least on Thursdays on NBC? It needs to get some serious buzz going because – as a witty and intelligent comedy – it’s already on the bubble.
I agree. They should lead off Thursdays with 30 Rock, then Community, into The Office and finally Parks and Recreation. Strong beginning to mediocre finish, but keeps Community alive and gives Parks a chance to try and retain numbers from The Office, which it seems to have a problem doing.
The problem with advertsing Community was that the pilot was so terrible. Beyond the brilliant first minute and a half, there was nothing presentable about it. Watch the 4-minute trailer presentation; they couldn’t even edit out 18 minutes and make it funny.
Now, the second episode? Hilarious. Fucking hilarious. Nominated for a Comedy Episode, for sure. But that wasn’t filmed until August probably.
I don’t buy the above explanation. AB helped move Kings from Thursday to Sunday as soon as she got off the plane. She was high on Southland, Trauma and Mercy. Ouch. Silverman was long gone when the last two stinkers went into production.
Aaahhh. Don’t be sad. They’re all adults. Let them take responsibility for their idiocy.
Ben Silverman is my hero. He’s the Michael Chimino of our generation. Instead of burning a studio to the ground, he burned NBC’s 2009-2010 slate.
I heard the Weinstein’s want to hire him. Wait, hold on… next year. They want to hire him next year.
Where is your TOLDJA? You’ve been on their case for a long time… and you are right!
Maybe NBC could pick up two quality canceled CBS shows, from last year. “Without a Trace” which was always highly ranked in the Ratings and “The Unit” also a solid show?
I thought Trauma’s second ep was much better than the pilot. Could it be people are tiring of medical type dramas?