By Gavin Boyle
CBS is set to deliver its 17th straight season with the most network viewership during primetime TV, breaking its own previous record set from 1955-1970.
“This is another CBS primetime schedule that will break through the clutter and entertain a mass audience,” Amy Reisenbach, President of CBS Entertainment, said heading into the season. “We’re grateful to the creative talent who deliver the characters and stories, as well as the viewers who spend nights, seasons and years with them.”
This year, CBS averaged 5.82 million viewers during primetime, per The Hollywood Reporter, up 2% from last year’s average of 5.59 million viewers. The network has led all of television through a lineup of extremely popular shows that include TRACKER, 60 MINUTES, GEORGIE & MANDY’S FIRST MARRIAGE, MATLOCK, FBI, NCIS and ELSBETH, which have all regularly ranked among the top 10 non-sports programming this year.
As CBS locks up the top viewership spot, the network is looking ahead to the fall season with its lineup already taking shape. The shows renewed for another season include NCIS; NCIS: ORIGINS; NCIS: SIDNEY; FIRE COUNTRY; THE ROAD; FBI; MATLOCK; SURVIVOR; and THE AMAZING RACE.
Related: CBS to Be Most-Watched Network for 16 Consecutive TV Seasons
“This season, our new and returning series continue to showcase CBS as the leader in launching and programming the biggest hits with mass appeal for broadcast and streaming viewers,” Reisenbach said about the network’s upcoming slate of programming. “These returning shows represent a mix of long-standing hits and a new generation of fan favorites. In collaboration with our extraordinarily talented partners in front of and behind the camera, we look forward to delivering another successful season.”
Despite continued success, many fans are unhappy with the network after multiple cancellations of fan-favorite shows. After months of pleas from both fans and cast members, BLUE BLOODS ended last December, and earlier this year, two of the three FBI shows were canceled as well.
These cancelations highlight a shift in the network’s strategy, especially as these shows were popular to the end. The cost to produce these long-lasting shows, however, continues to balloon, eventually making them too expensive to produce, even when they remain highly popular. Thus, it is more cost-effective to cut these shows and launch new spinoffs, which the network has done for both series.
FBI: CIA is a new show in the FBI universe coming this fall, while a BLUE BLOODS spinoff is currently in the works, starring Donnie Wahlberg’s character, Danny Reagan. Despite what fans may think, the network clearly knows what it is doing with these cancellations and spinoffs, as it continues a streak of domination that began in 2009.
Read Next: Looks Like CBS Just Cancelled Two More of Your Favorite Shows
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