Smith, The Nine, and Eyes: DirecTV to Air Cancelled TV Shows

The networks often frustrate their viewers by prematurely canceling serial dramas. To add insult to injury, they frequently end up leaving some episodes unaired. Well, for fans of three cancelled shows, things are about to get a little better.

DirecTV has just made a deal to air three brief series that just didn’t capture enough Nielson viewers; Smith, The Nine, and Eyes.

Smith revolves around a group of thieves and features the talents of Ray Liotta, Virginia Madsen, Simon Baker, Jonny Lee Miller, Franky G, Amy Smart, Chris Bauer, Shohreh Aghdashloo, K’Sun Ray, Tatum McCann, Lisa Vidal, Valarie Rae Miller, Elden Henson and Sidney S. Liufau. CBS pulled it after three episodes, leaving four on the shelf.

The Nine follows a group of people who’ve been through a bank robbery together. It showcases Lourdes Benedicto, John Billingsley, Jessica Collins, Tim Daly, Dana Davis, Camille Guaty, Chi McBride, Kim Raver, Scott Wolf, Owain Yeoman, Jeffrey Pierce, Tom Verica, Kim Staunton, and Michael Emanuel. ABC aired only nine of 13 installments.

Which show are you looking forward to seeing? Smith The Nine Eyes Eh. None of them. View Results  Loading ...

Eyes is centered around a moralistic legal firm and also stars Daly, as well as Eric Mabius, Laura Leighton, Rick Worthy, A.J. Langer, Natalie Zea, Reg Rogers, and Garcelle Beauvais-Nilon. Five episodes aired on ABC, leaving seven unseen.

Satellite television provider DirecTV has been looking for ways to expand its staple of original programming. They didn’t have much success with picking up Passions, the NBC soap opera. The company is apparently quite happy with the performance of Friday Night Lights, a joint project with NBC. While nothing’s been officially announced, it looks like Lights is about to be renewed for two more 13-episode seasons.

DirecTV has also begun picking up prematurely cancelled series. Earlier this year, the company aired the intense Wonderland series about a mental health facility. The success of that outing has apparently inspired them to make a deal with Warner Bros. TV for Smith, The Nine, and Eyes. While these projects aren’t new, they boast impressive casts and most televisions viewers have never seen them.

Smith is slated to begin on Wednesday, April 8th at 10pm and will go for seven weeks. The Nine will take over that timeslot starting on May 27th and will run for 13 weeks. Eyes will start airing on Wednesdays at 9pm, kicking off in July, and will run for 12 weeks.

All programs will air on DirecTV’s exclusive Channel 101. They’ll be made available in hi-definition and will run without commercials — certainly providing a nicer viewing experience than the shows received during their original runs.