Pete Kaczmarek and Nick Morelli consistently get themselves and their clients out of some pretty big jams. Unfortunately, there’s one that they can’t escape. Their TV series, The Defenders, has been cancelled by CBS after one season.
The Defenders follows a pair of Las Vegas lawyers who will do just about anything for their Sin City clients. They often take on cases no one else will touch and try to keep their sanity while doing it. The TV show stars Jerry O’Connell, Jim Belushi, Jurnee Smollett, Tanya Fischer, and Gillian Vigman.
The TV series got off to a decent start with a 2.9 rating in the all-important 18-49 demographic and 12.17 million viewers. In weeks two and three, those numbers started to tumble however with the demo falling 14% and then another 12% in weeks two and three. Airing on Wednesday nights, the ratings kept falling and hit a low of a 1.5 in the demo and 6.8 million.
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Because The Defenders was already registering poor numbers, CBS decided to try it on Friday nights, an evening with fewer viewers. If most fans followed and the show could sustain the Wednesday numbers, CBS would likely have been satisfied.
That didn’t happen and the remaining six installments fell even lower, hitting a 1.1 in the demo. That was a much worse performance than the timeslot’s previous occupant, already-cancelled Medium.
While The Defenders was supposedly still in contention for a second season until recently, most knew it was a long shot at best.
Word is that CBS has now cancelled The Defenders. All 18 produced episodes have aired. The series finale ran on March 11th.
What do you think? Are you sorry that there won’t be a second season for The Defenders?
Wondering where the rest of your shows stand? Check our CBS cancel/renew page.
Image courtesy CBS.
As usual, CBS gets rid of something that was halfway decent. I have stopped watching the network shows, as they are all a bunch of garbage.
The series was one of the most entertaining shows I have watched in a long time. I am so sorry to see it go.
so sad! Loved that show. Matter of fact looking for it on DVD. BOO-HISS CBS!
How disappointing when good television is cancelled.
###$$$$!!!!@@@@@@ CANCEL HOW I MET YOUR STUPID MOTHER, 60 MINUTES AND 48 HOURS AND GIVE ME THE DEFENDERS, MAD LOVE, AND @@$$$#### MY DAD SAYS
My wife and I both enjoyed the show!
She watches foood network and i watch news and sports / this show was something we watched together. Oh well,another on bites the dust (good job)
I have waited until September for the new season and waiting on The Defender to start…unbenoist to me i researched and found it was just cancelled!! I love this show!! I could truly make a list of the shows that should be cancelled and…they just premired!!!
Disappointing indeed.
I am not happy that The Defenders was canceled. It was a very good show. I watched all of The Practice, Boston Legal (except all the sex crap), and The Defenders, now I only have Drop Dead Diva for my lawyer show. Going thru my dvr I just deleted The Cape, The Gates, No Ordinary Family, Mr Sunshine, and possibly Persons Unknown, now The Defenders. Damn these tv stations. CBS, dont even think about touching Person of Interest.
I am VERY disappointed! I enjoyed the show, as well as the chemistry of the cast.
This show was really good. It is better than half the stuff on TV.
See? Here’s another fun show cancelled. Believe me, this is the story of my life. Except for LOST and Quantum Leap, I have to tell you it seems I like what doesn’t ‘go’ and can barely stand what hangs around. Let me also say I was kind of in to Mad Love. I’m not a big Sarah Chalke fan, but she was tolerable with the rest of the cast. Poor Judy Greer has been in a couple cute things that don’t make it very long. (The one where she was a teacher, MisUnderstood or some such thing) I wonder what… Read more »
The show was great! we are seeing the undoing of tv right before our eyes…oh please give us more reality crap in place of it cbs…geez. just bring the defenders back already!
That sucks the show was cancelled! It was really great….. One of the best shows on tv.
Why? I love this show!!