‘The Big Bang Theory’ season 10: Why there’s no reason to worry about renewal — for now

At this particular moment, “The Big Bang Theory” is in a little bit of an unusual place in terms of its run on CBS. This is a show that, for the vast majority of the time in which it’s been on the air, has been able to air without any real uncertainty for its future. This is the “Friends” or the “Everybody Loves Raymond” of the modern era, an enormous comedy hit that has amassed a major empire. In some ways, it may even more commercially viable than either one of them because its characters are so unique and, with its ties to comic-book and geek culture, it is incredibly easy to merchandise.

So why hasn’t the show been renewed just yet for a season 11? Cast negotiations are the major reason why. The show needs to sign virtually everyone back up, and it’s not entirely clear what some of the key players (including Jim Parsons, Kaley Cuoco, and Johnny Galecki) are asking for per episode. The five original cast members (which also includes Kunal Nayyar and Simon Helberg) are already among the highest-paid in television at around $1 million an episode; we’re not here to admonish them or take some sort of negative stance on their salaries, given that if so many of us were on the biggest comedy on TV generating huge problems, we’d have zero problems signing that contract, either.

One of the questions that you have to wonder while we wait for the show’s future is precisely how much money the show is generating at this point in revenue. Sure, it’s syndicated pretty much everywhere, but it would be even if the show ends. Merchandising would slow down, but it’d still be there. In terms of the live+same day ratings (the most important measure from a network point of view), the show is down — but not significantly. So far, we’re talking a drop of 9% year-to-year in the 18-49 demographic and just 4% for total viewers, which is rather good when you look at the declines elsewhere for shows like “NCIS” and “Criminal Minds.” (With that said, season 9 was down almost 14% in the demo from season 8.) It’s still a DVR monster, and those numbers are certainly good for something.

Any potential negotiations on the show’s future may not also be about money, given that the cast also has a variety of other projects now. Many of the cast members are getting more and more into producing, Melissa Rauch had her movie “The Bronze” earlier this year, and Helberg was recently nominated for a Golden Globe. Luckily, one of the benefits of this show is that its schedule is kinder than the standard single-camera series, but it does still inhibit your ability to travel around for most of the year. Eventually, someone may want to do other things.

We’ve wanted to put all of the cards on the table just so that you know what some of the potential hangups are when it comes to the future of “The Big Bang Theory” — in the end, though, we still remain confident that it will be renewed for one or at least two more seasons. Even if there are negotiations that are taking some time, we don’t get the sense that anyone is interested in leaving the show at this time — which is good, since consistency is one of the reasons for its success to date.

Once there is something more to report in terms of “The Big Bang Theory” and its future, we’ll have it for you here. For the time being, head over here to preview the next new episode. (Photo: CBS.)