It looks like the axe has fallen for the Paul Haggis/Bobby Moresco drama The Black Donnellys. But does it have to be replaced by a reality show?
The Black Donnellys follows the story of four young Donnelly brothers — a clan of Catholic Irish-American siblings who are involved in organized crime in New York’s infamous Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood. The story is told by unreliable narrator and Donnelly childhood friend named Joey “Ice Cream” while being incarcerated. The series stars Jonathan Tucker, Thomas Guiry, Olivia Wilde, Billy Lush, Michael Stahl-David, Kirk Acevedo and Keith Nobbs.
The series debuted on NBC on February 26, 2007 and took the place of Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip on Monday nights. The series’ initial half hour did well (10 million) but viewership fell off significantly in the second half hour (6 million). The series’ initial hour ranked #50 for the week. The subsequent episodes lost viewers and attracted as few as 5.5 million.
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While many hoped that a Donnelly dismissal would mean the return of Studio 60, NBC has other plans. The Real Wedding Crashers will debut at 10pm on Monday nights beginning April 23rd, just in time for May sweeps. It seemed like the Crashers reality show would air on Sunday nights but, NBC execs like the series enough to give it the benefit of a post-Heroes debut.
Unless NBC pulls the series even earlier, only eight episodes of Donnellys will have aired on network TV. The series’ third episode, entitled “God is a Comedian Playing to an Audience Afraid to Laugh,” was considered too violent for network TV and was released as an NBC.com exclusive.
The network has ordered 13 episodes and its unknown at this point what will become of the remaining four segments. They may air over the summer or could be released as online exclusives.
Whether we get to see the rest or not, it looks unlikely the series will be back for a new season in the Fall. NBC will announce their Fall schedule next month. Stay tuned! 
UPDATE: NBC has now pulled Donnellys’ last scheduled episode due to low ratings. The unaired episodes will be made available on NBC.com, presumably on a weekly basis.
I can´t belive they are cancelling! I don´t live in the states so I have not been able to watch leagly… but thanx to torrents I have been able to watch… And I must say, it was the best show I have ever seen next to The Sopranos…
I doubt anyone gets this far down, I’m surprised at how many others have already posted here. I was told about this atrocity earlier this evening and pretty much called the person a liar. I pretty much never watch TV other than the great Sopranos which is also ending soon. I can’t wait for each Monday to watch the new BD episodes. This show is groundbreaking in its content and the way it is delivered (narration etc.) As a business, marketing student I am utterly shocked that NBC has failed to make this show a hit. It is only their… Read more »
People, please be realistic here. This show has sucked from the beginnig – the acting is amateur, the writing is unrealistic, and the premise is basically an Irish “Sopranos”. It deserved to be cancelled, just as “Studio 60” did.
NBC is ridiculus…the best show it had in years and they’re pulling it to put on some garbage, im done with NBC, they suck
NBC was stupid for putting this show up against 24. 24 is going to dominate the demographic that the donnellys is aimed at, so it had no chance. I watched it on NBC.com, and would have watched it any other time of the week.
I cant believe they did this. The only non reality show I have watched in 20 years and they cancel it. BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO NBC
Like many others, i am angry about this. The only shows i watch are Seinfeld and The Black Donnelly’s. It’s definitely a tease now that it’s ending. Hopefully it gets picked up by another network, which is doubtfully.
NBC u suck…………You keep stupid shows and reality shows over this one maybe fox will pick it up and then I never have to watch nbc again…….
You’ve got to be kidding…Wedding Crashers???? Save the Black Donnelly’s!!!!!!!
I hope that another network picks up the Black Donnellys and airs it against the Wedding Crashers causing NBC to lose a huge advertising revenue stream on Monday nights. Then the f**ks that made the decision to cancell this great show get their asses fired!
I’m really confused…this is a great show and it’s really too bad that it is being cancelled. What’s worse is that it is being replaced by another reality show.
Unbelievable!!! This show finally got me excited about Monday night TV and now they drop it. Maybe a network with some balls and an eye for brilliance will pick it up, (did you hear that HBO)?
Ridiculous. If I have to watch another mindless hour of something along the lines of whose dog sings most like Elvis or some other asinine thing such as that, my colon will permanently clinch. Well-written dramas, apparently, have no place on network TV anymore…
I can’t say how much it will suck if the black donnelly’s is cancled.
This is the best show on tv. Better than the Sapranos