Three years after the COVID-19 industry-wide shutdown threw a wrench into the broadcast schedules, ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC and The CW now find themselves back in familiar territory after the nearly 150-day-long work stoppage that followed strikes by the Writers Guild of America and performers union SAG-AFTRA.
With the WGA strike now having wrapped, the five broadcast networks are quickly assembling writers rooms for such hits as Abbott Elementary, Young Sheldon, 911: Lone Star and a cadre of procedurals from Dick Wolf as industry insiders express optimism that the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike will be resolved quickly and filming can resume as scribes jam out scripts and pre-production begins on the centerpieces of the networks’ 2023-24 schedule.
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According to multiple sources familiar with the myriad plans in place at each network — which all hinge on the timing for when the actors strike may be resolved — scripted comedies and dramas could begin rolling out as early as January.
Writers rooms for broadcast scripted originals started reopening mere days after the WGA strike ended Sept. 27 with others gearing up to resume this week and next as broadcast networks eye a range of 10-15 episodes of returning comedies and dramas. That’s a fraction of the traditional order for broadcast dramas and comedies, which has hovered around the 20-22 episode marker, depending on the show.
Provided SAG-AFTRA can reach a new three-year Minimum Basic Agreement with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers in the next week or two — with CEOs involved in negotiations, the WGA deal was reached in five days — ABC is looking at a February return for hits including Abbott Elementary and Grey’s Anatomy. CBS, home of NCIS and CSI, is also considering an early 2024 return as details are still being worked out internally. Fox is eyeing a return to its standard scripted schedule by early March, while NBC — which has already launched two new shows this month with 2022-23 holdovers in The Irrational and Found — is planning for originals to be back on the schedule as early as January.
As would be expected, NBC’s Wolf-produced Chicago trio as well as at least two of its three Law & Order dramas are considered to be the top priority to get back on the air as the procedural king is known for his efficiency. Writers rooms for five of his six broadcast shows resumed this week. (L&O: Organized Crime still needs to hire a new showrunner, which will likely delay its return a little.)
The CW, now controlled by Nexstar, has only four holdovers from its Mark Pedowitz-led regime and the Brad Schwartz-run network is looking at April for the returns of All American and its Homecoming spinoff and Walker. All three of those are expected to air 13-episode seasons that spill over into the summer. Superman & Lois, which will return with 10 episodes, will come later to allow time for visual effects work.
All five networks had strike-proofed their fall 2023 schedules by either bulking up on unscripted programming or pushing new originals — like NBC’s Found and The Irrational — from last season to this year. ABC, for example, also recently added five NBA games to its midseason schedule and will first focus on returning comedies that can be promoted during games. Multicamera comedies like The Connors will be first to return as those can be shot in about five days. Quinta Brunson’s beloved Abbott Elementary will likely return in February.
With the priority on returning hits — which require less of a marketing spend — broadcast networks will also have fewer slots on their respective schedules. That likely means that new shows that have yet to film beyond their pilots may very well be pushed to the 2024-25 broadcast season as that affords them the proper time to staff a writers room and to creatively find their footing. What’s more, the move will also reduce the spending needs on pilot season after the WGA strike effectively wiped out broadcast development season. ABC has already bumped its Drew Goddard drama High Potential to next fall and others, including NBC medical drama St. Denis Medical, areexpected to follow suit. It’s too soon to say if the same will be true for CBS and its four rookies Elsbeth, Matlock, Tracker and multicam Poppa’s House. Fox could also push new dramas Rescue: Hi-Surf and Doc to 2024-25.
NBC finds itself in the best position with seven episodes of The Irrational already in the can and three left to be filmed. Returning drama Quantum Leap also has eight of its 13-episode order already completed. Rookie comedy Extended Family, featuring Jon Cryer’s return to broadcast, was designed to pair with fellow multicam Night Court and has already wrapped seven episodes. Night Court also filmed one episode before the dual strikes shut everything down. Pending the SAG-AFTRA strike, both could be back on the air in January — if not sooner. The entire six-episode final season of La Brea has already largely been completed and is ready to go based on NBC’s scheduling needs.
Still to be determined are the fates of ABC drama The Rookie: Feds and the pilot for The Good Doctor spinoff, The Good Lawyer, Fox’s animated comedy Housebroken and live-action dramedy Welcome to Flatch as well as NBC drama pilot Wolf, starring Zachary Quinto. As time slots remain at a premium once the actors strike concludes, returning shows may find themselves on the wrong side of the bubble and pilots could be greenlit for 2024-25.
