Universal TV’s Erin Underhill On Studio Procedurals’ Strong Return, Renewal Status On Wolf Dramas & ‘The Equalizer’, Future Of ‘Quantum Leap’ & More
28.02.2024 - 01:29
/ deadline.com
Absence does make the heart grow fonder as viewers have welcomed the return of the broadcast scripted series after a long delay due to the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Ratings have been strong all around, including for all nine Wolf Entertainment procedurals from Universal Television, the Law & Order and Chicago franchises at NBC and the FBI trio at CBS as well CBS/UTV’s The Equalizer. The Chicagosand the Law & Orders all opened their new seasons up by double digits in both total viewers and adults 18-49 from their final four episodes last season. The premieres of FBIs and Equalizer ranked in the Top 13 most watched primetime programs the week of Feb. 12, all up or on par with the most recent episodes last season.
In an interview with Deadline, Universal Television President Erin Underhill spoke of the uncertainty — and anxiety — within the industry about how scripted series would perform after the strike-related delay and gave her assessment as to why the procedurals did so well in their return.
The Chicago and Law & Order series debuted their new seasons in mid-January, three months after the end of the WGA strike and two months after the end of the SAG-AFTRA stoppage. Underhill described the “mad dash” to get the shows on the air through the holiday season as writers rooms opened just a couple of days after the WGA strike.
She also addressed the frequent cast changes on Wolf series, the upcoming renewals of all ten procedurals and the prospects of NBC’s Quantum Leap, which just wrapped its second season heavily on the bubble.
Universal TV has one NBC drama pilot, Jenna Bans and Bill Krebs’ Grosse Pointe Garden Society, which is not really a procedural but Underhill teased a pending NBC pickup for a true procedural
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