Menu
  • Home
  • News
  • Cancelled or Renewed?
    • Cancelled TV Shows (lists)
    • Cancellations
    • Renewals
    • TV Show Status Pages
    • Vulture Watch
  • TV Ratings
    • Daily Network Ratings
    • Ratings by Season/Channel
    • Weekly Averages
    • Soap Opera Ratings
    • Archive
    • Viewer Votes
      • ABC TV shows
      • CBS TV shows
      • The CW TV shows
      • FOX TV shows
      • NBC TV shows
      • All Viewer Votes
  • About
  • YouTube
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • RSS
  • Mail

canceled + renewed TV shows - TV Series Finale

   

Kings: NBC Exec Explains Why the Ambitious Drama Failed

by Trevor Kimball, August 7, 2009

KingsUnder the reign of Ben Silverman, NBC spent a whole lot of money on Kings — about $4 million an episode. Unfortunately for the peacock network, most viewers weren’t interested and the network lost a lot of money.

After three weeks of low ratings, they shuffled the series off to die on Saturday evenings, when viewership is typically lower anyway. While many devoted fans tuned in each week to watch actors like Ian McShane, Christopher Egan, Allison Miller, Susanna Thompson, Sebastian Stan, Eamonn Walker, and Dylan Baker, the numbers weren’t enough for the show to go back into production.

Not only won’t Kings be returning for a second season but NBC isn’t planning on taking that kind of ambitious risk again. The network’s President of Primetime Entertainment, Angela Bromstad, said this week, “It was a great production, but our challenge now is, you need to sell something. People want to know what something is about.”

Bromstad continued, “Kings was a complex idea. It was originally developed when I was [at NBC] before. We didn’t make it [then] because we thought it was a little too high brow and too difficult to sell in a 30 second slot. It doesn’t mean we’re not looking for big ideas [but] they have to be big ideas that the audience can grab on to.”

What do you think? Was the concept too much for the audience to grasp or did it fail for another reason? Too good for network TV?


Image courtesy NBC.

More about: Kings

Related Articles

  • Kings on NBC cancelled
    Kings
    May 1, 2012
  • 84 TV Shows Cancelled or Ending during the 2009 – 2010 Season
    May 19, 2010
  • Cancelled & Renewed NBC TV Shows for 2009-10
    Cancelled & Renewed NBC TV Shows for 2009-10
    May 16, 2010
  • <em>Kings:</em> Watch the Last Episode of the Cancelled NBC Series
    Kings: Watch the Last Episode of the Cancelled NBC Series
    July 27, 2009
  • 2008 - 2009 Cancelled TV Shows: 25 NBC Series That Won't Be Back for 2009 - 2010
    2008 – 2009 Cancelled TV Shows: 25 NBC Series That Won’t Be Back for 2009 – 2010
    May 20, 2009
  • Veterans of Cancelled TV Shows That We Lost in April 2009
    Veterans of Cancelled TV Shows That We Lost in April 2009
    May 6, 2009
  • 2008 - 2009 Cancelled Shows: Update on NBC Renewals and Cancellations
    2008 – 2009 Cancelled Shows: Update on NBC Renewals and Cancellations
    May 3, 2009
  • <em>Kings:</em> NBC Pulls Drama after One Saturday Night Showing
    Kings: NBC Pulls Drama after One Saturday Night Showing
    April 22, 2009
  • <em>Kings:</em> NBC Yanks Low-rated TV Series from Sunday Nights
    Kings: NBC Yanks Low-rated TV Series from Sunday Nights
    April 7, 2009
  • <em>Kings:</em> NBC's Silverman Still Has Hope for Low-Rated Drama
    Kings: NBC’s Silverman Still Has Hope for Low-Rated Drama
    March 20, 2009
  • <em>Kings:</em> Petition to Continue the NBC TV Show
    Kings: Petition to Continue the NBC TV Show
    March 19, 2009
  • <em>Kings:</em> Is the New TV Show As Good As Cancelled Already?
    Kings: Is the New TV Show As Good As Cancelled Already?
    March 16, 2009

Canceled and renewed TV show
« Previous Post
Next Post »

122
Leave a Reply

avatar
119 Comment threads
3 Thread replies
0 Followers
 
Most reacted comment
Hottest comment thread
88 Comment authors
A. BBuggerlugzMoritzMichaelLynne Recent comment authors
avatar

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

ron
Reader
ron

Unbelievably good writing. Shocking that it actually made it to primetime TV. A rare jewel and totally enjoyable for the short time it was able to shine. If only networks were run by “normal” people – people who make schedules that people know when things are on and a commitment to gain an audience. I read long books instead.

Vote Up00Vote Down Reply
September 28, 2010 11:01 pm
Marti
Reader
Marti

I miss this show, please get it back up and running the writing was excellent. Think about it PLEASE

Vote Up00Vote Down Reply
September 27, 2010 9:35 pm
Zach
Reader
Zach

Kings was a perfect example of speaking too much ‘truth’ about the distorted world around us..its a story that needs to be told, and listened/watched by everyone. I only offer this because like so many other people like myself, we want stories that inspire to do good things, to make us better people, and to make us wiser than when we first started. Sure, its just a show, but it can be so much more for many of us still willing to take something away from this timeless tale.

Sign this petition to get ‘Kings’ back: https://tvseriesfinale.com/tv-show/kings-petition/

Long live the ‘Kings’!

Vote Up00Vote Down Reply
August 3, 2010 9:06 am
Linda
Reader
Linda

I have watched kings upto the last episode in two days. it was wrong for it to be cancelled. if you do not want to air it sell it. Its wrong to leave such a great thing unfinished, it shows cowardice. Kings is great, we’d like to see David become King!

Vote Up00Vote Down Reply
July 22, 2010 5:36 am
KLL
Reader
KLL

I LIKED “KINGS” AMONG OTHER CANCELED NBC SHOWS.

Vote Up00Vote Down Reply
July 14, 2010 12:36 am
Spike
Reader
Spike

I can’t wait for the big networks to crumble to TV on Demand. We’ll see the independent producers empowered to create a show not just for the dollar, but for the achievement of creating something new, fresh and intelligent. While the big networks remain on top, we will continue to loose great shows like Kings. I must say that Michael Green did a brilliant job with Kings, its one of my all time favourites. It was a massive pity that NBC was never advertised it properly. I only just heard about it last month 🙁

Vote Up10Vote Down Reply
July 6, 2010 5:07 am
the Deester
Reader
the Deester

I’m very disappointed that ‘Kings’ won’t be back. It was a complex show, and that’s what I loved about it. It was well acted and smart. It was an original idea. Sometimes brainless tv is good when you just want to veg. But the majority of programming today has become copycatting garbage. And NBC in particular has become quite the receptacle for garbage. I can’t even watch the ‘Today’ show anymore. They’ve gone quite limp. Thank goodness for ‘Parenthood’. Hope I didn’t just jinx it! I’m jumping over to their station USA, where some of my favorite shows are. Just… Read more »

Vote Up10Vote Down Reply
June 2, 2010 8:02 am
B Evert
Reader
B Evert

I agree totally, i faithfully watched every episode, sometimes more then once. I do think it would have survived as a short series coming back every year. something to consider . I did have alot of my friends watching it when I had them sit down and watch one episode. none really knew much about it. hoping you bring it back in some state. Bets

Vote Up00Vote Down Reply
May 27, 2010 8:36 pm
Jeremiah
Reader
Jeremiah

I’m just sick to death of NBC. I’m past my 20’s now, and hate to say getting ready to hit 40. It seems like every time I start to like a show the network gets rid of it. Guess what NETWORKS thats why I got HBO, SHOWTIME, and STARZ. I’m sick of this stupid shows that are designed for brainless idots. I know there cheap to make, but what does it say about the networks? It’s to the point I have to watch USA to get TV shows I like. I know USA is owned by NBC, but then why… Read more »

Vote Up00Vote Down Reply
May 20, 2010 9:12 pm
Ms. Lewis
Reader
Ms. Lewis

I watched the show about a month ago and brought it on Amazon. I watched the whole season in 3 to 4 days. I liked it a lot and told some of my god-sisters about it. Marketing is the key to success but NBC wants to blame the failure on the show. Nothing more to say besides, as others have said, I would like to see more.

Vote Up00Vote Down Reply
May 18, 2010 7:49 am
dott
Reader
dott

Judging by the cast, the concept and story line, I just know I would have loved this show. That is, had I even known it existed; frankly the reason I did not know about “Kings,” is because it aired on NBC. Shipping it over to another network (e.g., ABC, as Richard suggested) would really help. In general, this recent trend is infuriating: shows that my family and I really enjoy are yanked after two or three episodes. Are times that tough, that Network higher-ups are that trigger-happy? Why not make any new show, a miniseries instead? To test the waters:… Read more »

Vote Up00Vote Down Reply
May 17, 2010 10:00 pm
Courtney
Reader
Courtney

I absolutely agree with previous comments. This show was truly a refreshing piece of work and I hate that the average viewer’s intelligence is thought so poorly of that networks feel the need to produce shows that literally spell out the conclusion to every mystery or unaswered question. This show kept me glued and while it was still on I for one got the word out there to people who quite frankly had never even heard the name because evidently the only place they bothered to heavily advertise was New York where one of my sisters lives. No one else… Read more »

Vote Up00Vote Down Reply
May 16, 2010 7:52 pm
Dennison
Reader
Dennison

We enjoyed Kings so very much. The biggest obstacle in following Kings was figuring out when it was on; this week ‘yes’ on one night, next week ‘no’ but ‘yes’ on a different night. We missed so many episodes it was hard to keep it all ltogether. No advertising didn’t help much either. Had I been the network boss, I could have sold the show easily – just tell people when it’s on and be consistent. How about starting all over and run the series from the beginning or at least a major review. There’s enough drama in actual Old… Read more »

Vote Up00Vote Down Reply
May 12, 2010 7:12 pm
Taryn
Reader
Taryn

I don’t think Kings was too high brow or too difficult to sell. I find it insulting that NBC doesn’t give intellectual credit to its viewing audience. Perhaps it wasn’t marketed properly, or perhaps Sunday and Saturday nights are really bad nights to try to start a new show, but if NBC had given Kings a chance to attract an audience, I don’t think they would have been disappointed. I wish NBC would give us some sort of conclusion. They took a chance by producing such an ambitious show; I wish they would take one again by bringing it to… Read more »

Vote Up00Vote Down Reply
May 12, 2010 3:28 pm
James
Reader
James

I just this minute saw the last episode for Kings: The Series as a DVD rental. I enjoyed all the episodes and was sorry to learn the series had been discontinued by NBC. I think it would have been more successful and profitable as a mini-series with a conclusion. On a scale of one to five, five being excellent, I would rate it a four (because it has left me hanging with too many questions). I wish NBC would bring it back as a mini-series with a conclusion. I bet they could make a profit from the sales of DVD……I… Read more »

Vote Up00Vote Down Reply
May 8, 2010 9:52 am
Tates
Reader
Tates

The DVD is out and we have had it for several weeks. It’s definitely a favourite. I don’t think the series was too high-brow at all. I cannot accept that we are that much more intelligent than the average viewer – more intelligent, yes, but not THAT much more intelligent.

Vote Up00Vote Down Reply
July 22, 2010 11:59 am
« Previous 1 … 5 6 7 8 Next »
wpdiscuz   wpDiscuz
Fall 2020 Schedule Cancelled TV Show Lists Ratings (by TV Channel) Status Lists of 800+ Shows
  • Cancellations
  • Renewals
  • The Bold Type TV show on Freeform: (canceled or renewed?) The Bold Type: Season Five; Freeform Drama Series Renewed for Final Season (Video)
  • Year of the Rabbit TV Show on IFC: canceled or renewed? Year of the Rabbit: Season Two Cancelled; Channel 4 and IFC Renewal Reversed
  • At Home with Amy Sedaris TV show on truTV: (canceled or renewed?) At Home with Amy Sedaris: Cancelled by truTV, No Season Four
  • Peaky Blinders TV show on BBC One and Netflix, ending no season 7 Peaky Blinders: Season Six; BBC & Netflix Series Ending But the Story Will Continue
  • High Maintenance TV show on HBO: (canceled or renewed?) High Maintenance: "Cancelled," No Season Five for HBO Comedy Series
  • Animal Kingdom: season six renewal, no season 7 Animal Kingdom: Season Six; TNT Series Gets Early Renewal for Final Season
  • More...
  • Love Island TV show on CBS: canceled or renewed for season 3? Love Island: Season Three Renewal for CBS Competition Series January 27, 2021
  • The Bold Type TV show on Freeform: (canceled or renewed?) The Bold Type: Season Five; Freeform Drama Series Renewed for Final Season (Video) January 27, 2021
  • I Can See Your Voice TV show on FOX: canceled or renewed for season 2? I Can See Your Voice: Season Two Renewal for FOX Game Show January 27, 2021
  • The Blacklist TV show on NBC: canceled or renewed for season 9? The Blacklist: Season Nine; NBC Series Renewed for the 2021-22 Season January 26, 2021
  • Weakest Link TV show on NBC: canceled or renewed for season 2? Weakest Link: Season Two Renewal for NBC Game Show Revival January 25, 2021
  • Help! I Wrecked My House TV Show on HGTV: canceled or renewed? Help! I Wrecked My House: Season Two Renewal for HGTV Series January 25, 2021
  • More...
  • TV Ratings
  • Quick Questions
  • Chicago Med TV Show on NBC: canceled or renewed? Wednesday TV Ratings: Chicago Med, Nancy Drew, SWAT, The Masked Dancer, For Life
  • Love Island TV show on CBS: season 1 ratings Love Island: Season Two Ratings
  • The Bold Type TV show on Freeform: season 4 ratings The Bold Type: Season Four Ratings
  • I Can See Your Voice TV show on FOX: season 1 ratings I Can See Your Voice: Season One Ratings
  • Two Sentence Horror Stories TV show on The CW: season 2 ratings Two Sentence Horror Stories: Season Two Ratings
  • More...
  • Salvation TV show on CBS: season 3 (canceled or renewed?) Salvation: Season Three? Should the CBS Summer Series Be Renewed? September 18, 2018
  • Take Two TV show on ABC: canceled or renewed for season 2? Take Two: Season Two; Should the ABC TV Show Be Renewed? September 13, 2018
  • Shooter TV show on USA Network: canceled, no season 4 Shooter: Season Four? Would You Watch the Cancelled Show on Another Channel? September 13, 2018
  • Shades of Blue TV show on NBC: no season four Shades of Blue: Season Four? Would You Have Kept Watching the NBC Series? August 20, 2018
  • Quantico TV show on ABC: canceled, no season 4 Quantico: Season Four; Would You Have Watched More of the Cancelled ABC Series? August 4, 2018
  • More...

The Latest

  • Shadow and Bone: Netflix Releases Photos and Premiere Date for Fantasy Series
  • The Tourist: Jamie Dornan and Others to Star in HBO Max Thriller Series
  • The Widower: NBC Sets True-Crime Mini-Series from Dateline NBC Producers
  • Too Hot to Handle: Netflix Dating Series Renewed for Seasons Two and Three
  • Love Island: Season Three Renewal for CBS Competition Series
  • United States of Al: CBS Announces Premiere Date for New Chuck Lorre Sitcom
  • The Bold Type: Season Five; Freeform Drama Series Renewed for Final Season (Video)
  • I Can See Your Voice: Season Two Renewal for FOX Game Show
  • Vikings: Valhalla: Netflix Announces Characters and Cast for Vikings Prequel Series
  • Diggstown: FOX to Air Canadian Legal Drama Series
  • Bulletproof: Season Three; CW Action Series Returns in March
  • Debris: NBC Sets Premiere Date for Sci-Fi Series (Video)
  • The Blacklist: Season Nine; NBC Series Renewed for the 2021-22 Season
  • The Witcher: Blood Origin: Jodie Turner-Smith Cast in New Netflix Series
  • Assembly Required: Tim Allen and Richard Karn Reunite in History Competition Series
  • 90 Day: The Single Life: Discovery+ Launching 90 Day Fiance Follow Up Series
  • Fraggle Rock: Production Begins on Apple TV+ Revival Series from Jim Henson Company
  • Weakest Link: Season Two Renewal for NBC Game Show Revival
  • Rebel, Grey's Anatomy, Home Economics: ABC Announces Series Return and Premiere Dates
More...

Popular

  • Cancelled or Renewed? Status of Cable & Streaming TV Shows (S-Z)
  • Cancelled or Renewed? Status of NBC TV Shows
  • FOX TV Shows: 2020-21 Viewer Votes
  • The CW TV Shows: 2020-21 Viewer Votes
  • CBS TV Shows: 2020-21 Viewer Votes
  • Viewer Votes Ranking for the 2020-21 Network TV Shows
  • ABC TV Shows: 2020-21 Viewer Votes
  • NBC TV Shows: 2020-21 Viewer Votes
  • The CW 2020-21 Season Ratings (updated 1/27/21)
  • FOX 2020-21 Season Ratings (updated 1/27/21)
  • NBC 2020-21 Season Ratings (updated 1/27/21)
  • CBS 2020-21 Season Ratings (updated 1/27/21)
  • ABC 2020-21 Season Ratings (updated 1/27/21)
  • Cancelled or Renewed? Status of FOX TV Shows
  • 2020-21 Season Ratings for New TV Shows (week 18)
  • 2020-21 TV Show Season Ratings (week 18)
  • TNT TV Show Ratings (updated 1/26/21)
  • Starz TV Show Ratings (updated 1/26/21)
  • Cancelled or Renewed? Status of ABC TV Shows

No infringement of previously copyrighted material is intended on this site. DMCA.

Copyright © TV Series Finale. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy.

wpDiscuz