Is Disney the reason for Agents of SHIELD season 5 renewal?
According to a report that is coming out now out of Variety, it was actually the higher-ups at Disney (who own Marvel and other properties) who were the catalysts behind the series continuing its run at ABC. The network was previously set to cancel the series, which was drawing lower ratings through much of its fourth season. We do understand some of where the network is coming from, since it’s hard to deal with a show that is rather costly plus also isn’t bringing back a substantial viewership. Yet, Disney clearly believes in the brand and the quality of the series; it also helps significantly that Disney wants a Marvel show on ABC more than likely on an annual basis. They’ve explored Marvel’s Most Wanted as a spin-off twice to try and solidify that brand even more.
Of course, the biggest irony here is that this is a series that at one point premiered to an enormous 4.7 rating, which is one of the most impressive performances from a network show in recent memory. Unfortunately it lost a good third of that audience almost right away (presumably from people disappointed to learn that there were no superheroes in the show) and then the majority of the rest of it whittled away in the years to come. We do think that the biggest culprit here was the first season siphoning a lot of viewers; this was a show that had some stumbled heading out of the game, and we do believe that had the show performed a little bit better in the early going creatively it wouldn’t be in the position now where Disney or anyone else had to come to its rescue.
The concern that comes with this report now is that Agents of SHIELD is entering its all-important fifth season, and with actor contracts typically expiring after six or seven years, we could be getting to the end of the road here since the show probably can’t afford any raises. Also, with it moving to a new timeslot on Friday nights there is a chance there could also be some ratings drops. Our hope is that if you love Agents of SHIELD that you will continue to watch. There is some truth to the statement that live ratings aren’t as enormously important as they used to be, but they do still matter more than any other viewership measure.
Do you want to see an Agents of SHIELD season 5 renewal happen?
Be sure to sound off now in the comments! Meanwhile, head over to this link if you haven’t seen the poster for the new season, or head over here to get some news on Agents of SHIELD and more via our CarterMatt Facebook page. (Photo: ABC.)