All American, The 100, Roswell, New Mexico, In the Dark all renewed
Entering this spring, our perception was that one of these shows (most likely All American or In the Dark) would get the ax, mostly because it’s network tradition to at least cut one show out of the schedule. Then again, The CW is clearly operating with a very specific set of parameters in mind. For starters, they are still losing three shows this season in iZombie, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, and Jane the Virgin. They clearly believe that those three shows saying goodbye is going to lead to them having enough timeslots to fill up with some additional shows. They’re also cognizant that Arrow season 8 is only going to run for ten episodes, which means that they also need to have another show ready to fill its timeslot when we get around to midseason.
What we’d heard about some of these shows before this renewal news came out was that there was a lot of optimism around Roswell, New Mexico and it was never really in any danger. Meanwhile, there had been rumors about The 100 setting production dates for a season 7 a while back and that it was probably going to be fine. In the Dark was just so new that it was hard to get a good read on it, but the network has thrown their support behind the show and believe that it can continue to build some momentum.
Perhaps the most interesting case study here was All American, given that CW head Mark Pedowitz was careful to never overly emphasize it as a lock for renewal. The ratings for the football series were lower than many other newcomers to the lineup, and while the show was critically acclaimed, its early launch on Netflix would be a factor in determining a little bit of its future. Luckily, All American is clearly showing that it’s getting some traction at the streaming service and there’s enough of a reason to think that it could be getting more viewers for a season 2. We wouldn’t be shocked if the episode order was scaled down, but it also doesn’t really need to be super-long here given that football is a sport that only lasts so long in a given year. This is also a series that could have a fairly limited shelf life due to its subject matter already, and we’d like to see it at least see some of that story through.
What do you think about all of these renewals coming in today, and The CW choosing to not cancel anything for this season? Be sure to let us know some more thoughts in the comments.
Photo: The CW