2 weeks ago
To periphrase nan celebrated philharmonic title, a funny point happened connected nan measurement to nan upfronts this year. One by one, nan 4 awesome broadcast web announced their 2026-27 lineups, and each of them featured much scripted bid than nan existent season.
The turnaround was truthful unexpected that galore didn’t spot nan trend, including apt nan Netflix upfront speechwriters.
“Other companies are spending nan mostly of their fund connected sports and cutting backmost connected scripted shows,” Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria said connected shape astatine nan streamer’s presentation, which was held connected Wednesday afternoon, aft each broadcast networks had unveiled their 2026-27 plans.
In caller years, amid sliding linear ratings, manufacture contraction and nan effect of nan pandemic and nan 2023 Hollywood strikes, that connection would’ve been correct. But not this year.
CBS is adding 3 caller play bid (Cupertino, NCIS: New York, Einstein) and 1 drama (Eternally Yours) while canceling 1 play (Watson) and 2 comedies (The Neighborhood, DMV) for a nett summation of +1.5 hours of scripted programming.
NBC is adding 2 caller play bid (The Rockford Files, Line of Fire) and 2 caller comedies (Sunset P.I., Newlyweds) while canceling 1 of each (Beautiful Minds, Stumble) for a nett summation of +1.5 scripted hours which whitethorn beryllium revised down — but stay successful affirmative territory — depending connected nan destiny of nan network’s past show connected nan bubble, The Hunting Party.
Fox is adding 2 caller play series, Baywatch and The Interrogator, while canceling 1 comedy, Going Dutch, for different nett summation of +1.5 hours.
And past location is ABC, which is adding a caller play series, The Rookie: North, without canceling a azygous scripted show. Last year, ABC picked up 2 dramas and 1 drama for 2025-26, 9-1-1: Nashville, R.J. Decker and nan Scrubs reboot, while not bringing backmost 1 drama, Doctor Odyssey and 1 comedy, The Conners. The different broadcast networks canceled much scripted bid than they picked up for nan 2025-26 season.
“We are thrilled that not only we were capable to renew R.J., but besides that we’re adding to our slate for nan 2nd consecutive twelvemonth pinch Rookie: North, that’s thing that nary different web tin opportunity heading into this upfront week,” Ari Goldman, SVP, Content Strategy and Scheduling, told Deadline aft nan 11th hr renewal of nan Scott Speedman freshman play and bid order to The Rookie spinoff earlier this week. “We not only are increasing our scripted slate but for nan first clip in, literally, nan history of ABC, person renewed each 1 of our scripted series, and they’re renewed because they’re each performing well.”
It’s difficult to pinpoint nan logic for nan scripted comeback connected broadcast. Some of it could beryllium a recalibration aft a caller pullback. CBS, NBC and Fox each went down year-to-year connected their scripted slates past season, marginally for CBS and Fox and importantly for NBC, which canceled 5 play bid (four homegrown and Canadian import Transplant), and 2 drama bid while adding only 2 caller comedies to make room for NBA’s presence to nan web past fall. (In 2026-27, NBC has other 2 weeks and a half weeks worthy of primetime inventory to capable that was taken up by nan Winter Olympics this play though nan web is adding much sports successful nan autumn via NBCUniversal’s woody pinch MLB Baseball.)
The broadcast scripted description could beryllium besides a delayed guidance to a seismic arena for illustration nan 1 Fox Entertainment CEO Rob Wade referenced connected nan network’s upfront telephone connected Sunday.
He brought up nan 2019 Disney acquisition of Fox assets, including Fox’s main supplier of scripted programming, 20th Television, which had been producing shows for nan web nether a vertically integrated business exemplary that nary longer worked for independent Fox.
“Going backmost to nan Disney transaction, if you remember, we had a batch of 20th shows connected nan network, we had shows for illustration The Resident, 9-1-1, 9-1-1: Lone Star which conscionable continued,” Wade said. “That gave [Fox Network President] Michael [Thorn] and his squad nan opportunity to build a scripted slate disconnected nan backmost of that. (We didn’t person nan aforesaid problem pinch nan unscripted slate). To spell retired and abruptly switch 5 aliases six scripted shows each successful 1 spell is foolhardy because you don’t person nan schedule, nan trading muscle, nan assemblage doesn’t person nan bandwidth to header pinch that, if you motorboat six shows each nan ones, it’s very difficult for nan assemblage to find each six astatine once. So what we’ve been doing complete nan past 5 aliases six years is slow building that slate up.”
There is besides nan matter of bid sizes. The networks’ schedules are rigid, pinch a group number of primetime hours to capable each play that cannot expand. Also, to equilibrium their offerings to viewers — and their budgets — nan nets operation costly sports and scripted programming pinch little priced reality fare.
For instance, CBS, whose scripted portfolio includes nan astir watched bid connected broadcast successful Marshals and Tracker, is adding 3 caller dramas and 1 drama while canceling a play and 2 comedies. But that translates to a nett summation of +12 scripted hours because, arsenic Deadline reported exclusively, nan web is cutting nan orders of respective returning bid for 2026-27, including Fire Country (from 20 to 13 episodes), NCIS: Origins (from 18 to 10) and NCIS: Sydney (from 20 to 10).
The different broadcast networks are going pinch a type of that too. ABC’s Goldman admitted that nan determination to prime up some R.J. Decker and The Rookie: North would consequence successful trimming nan section orders for immoderate bid adjacent season.
“We’re still moving done nan precise section counts crossed nan board,” he said. “Some of our shows are going to enactment precisely arsenic they’ve been, but I do deliberation we’re ever looking to make decisions that make financial consciousness for nan company, truthful immoderate counts whitethorn set astatine nan extremity of nan day.”
Goldman was speedy to stress that “nothing that would ever effect nan creative. We’re ever successful nan business of increasing nan libraries of these shows for streaming, not only here, but crossed nan globe, and truthful we’re very superior astir staying successful that crippled and doing immoderate it takes to fortify that portfolio.”
That is an important constituent for vertically integrated networks for illustration ABC, CBS and NBC arsenic much episodes ordered from their sister studios turn nan series’ libraries that tin beryllium monetized downstream, internationally and connected streaming, building a gross watercourse for nan genitor company.
This is besides why Fox is starting to ain immoderate of its scripted bid while besides being disciplined successful its attack to dramas and live-action comedies by adopting models involving more modest licence fees.
Even pinch section bid sizes taking a haircut, having much scripted bid connected nan broadcast networks benefits nan imaginative community, creating much jobs for writers, actors — arsenic good arsenic crews and auxiliary business erstwhile nan shows are made successful nan U.S. — allowing much group to beryllium employed, support their families and meet their wellness security sum minimums.
