ABC Renewal Status Report: ‘The Conners’ & ‘Not Dead Yet’
16.04.2024 - 17:39
/ deadline.com
Second in a series on broadcast network series renewals. This is a rarity — it’s still mid-April and ABC has already made decisions on all of its existing drama series.
The popular Nathan Fillion cop series The Rookie was the last to get word yesterday with a Season 7 renewal after some intense negotiations with the show’s new lead studio, Lionsgate, which acquired The Rookie producer eOne in December. It joins recently renewed Grey’s Anatomy, 9-1-1 and Will Trent, with The Good Doctor and Station 19 ending their runs.
ABC, which did not introduce new scripted series this strike-impacted season (except for Fox transplant 9-1-1), has two drama series on deck for next season, Drew Goddard’s High Potential and Ryan Murphy’s Dr. Odyssey. The sizes of the orders at the network for 2024-25 are rumored to be 18 episodes or less.
Abbott Elementary was the first ABC scripted series renewed for next season back in February. Two months later, it remains the only comedy on the network whose status for next season has been determined, with veteran The Conners and sophomoreNot Dead Yet on the bubble.
Roseanne followup The Conners, which just marked its 100th episode and remains a sturdy ratings performer, has found itself in serious limbo. According to sources, talks are underway between ABC and sitcom’s independent producer, Tom Werner’s Werner Entertainment, but I hear the main cast has not been approached yet. In years past, the actors, who have been on one-year deals from the start, would have been just about done negotiating new contracts by now, paving the way to a renewal, which inevitably followed.
This time, the focus has been on renewal negotiations. If they are successful, I hear The Conners will likely be picked up