NBC has cancelled the Thursday airings of their low-rated legal series, The Firm, and sent it packing to Saturday nights at 9pm beginning February 11th.
The Firm follows attorney Mitch McDeere (Josh Lucas), his wife Abby (Molly Parker), and their daughter Claire (Natasha Calis), as they emerge from the witness protection program after 10 years. They relocate to Washington, DC to restart their lives but problems from the past quickly resurface. The show’s cast also includes Callum Keith Rennie, Juliette Lewis, Tricia Helfer, and Shaun Majumder.
NBC had high hopes for the legal drama but it stumbled in the ratings right from the start. The two-hour premiere of The Firm registered just a 1.4 rating in the 18-49 demographic and 6.32 million viewers. The numbers got even worse once the show moved to Thursday nights and, for the past two weeks, has only mustered a 0.8 rating with fewer than three million total viewers.
It’s no surprise that NBC is banishing The Firm to Saturday nights with ratings like these. Grimm repeats will fill the Thursdays at 10pm timeslot for the immediate future. Starting March 1st, the peacock network’s new drama Awake will take over.
While it looks highly unlikely that NBC will purchase a second season of The Firm, it seems certain that viewers will get to see all 22 episodes of season one.
If The Firm had been a typical network show, the episode order probably would have been cut down to 13 installments because of the low ratings. However, NBC’s deal for The Firm is unique and a bit more like the one the network had for Merlin, the supernatural drama produced by the BBC.
Sony and Entertainment One partnered to produce The Firm, primarily for the overseas market. Thanks to pre-sales and Canadian production tax credits, the cost of producing the series was already paid for and NBC was able to pick up the show for a greatly reduced licensing fee, just like any other secondary buyer.
If The Firm had been a big success, NBC would have made quite a profit on the series. As things worked out, the network may still be making some money on the deal or at least hasn’t lost much.
Will there be a second season? That depends on Sony and Entertainment One, not NBC.
What do you think? Do you like The Firm? Do you think it should continue?
Image courtesy NBC.
Give it a chance!! Word of mouth can help eventually
LOVE THE SHOW….BEST SHOW THAT NBC HAS HAD IN THE RECENT PAST. PLEASE DON’T CANCEL ONE OF THE ONLY SERIES WORTH WATCHING ON TV!!!!
We have watched this show faithfully since it began, and have never missed an episode. We love the twists and turns in the plot, as well as the unique way in which the show is scripted; you’re out of luck if you miss an episode because the continuing plot is at the beginning and end of each episode. Perhaps moving the show to a time slot where there is less competition might draw more viewers. Please don’t cancel.
Love this show. Good actors, good writers, and a fast paced intelligent story line. Hope this show lasts….
Yes , please continue this show. My husband and I are on the edge of our seats to know what will happen next in every episode!
I love this show! I’m disappointed in the Saturday move. Why not move it to a night during the week when there is nothing good on tv? I hope it gets a second chance.
My wife and I like this show and were surprised to see that so many others didn’t. Please keep it on. The story line is excellent and the characters are very likeable.
PLEASE continue this show – We love it!!!
best showww why would they cancel it why do ppl not give a chance to watch it and get into it great show the network should continue with it hopefully ratings will get btr and move the showings during the week and not weekends
I love the show but with that kinda rating, it’s gonna get canceled for sure. If the show was broadcasted in CBS, it would definitely get good ratings. No new show from NBC gets good rating because everybody knows just about all shows from NBC will get canceled before the season is over so why bother of getting into it. Shame on NBC. It’s a cycle, I don’t see NBC turning around any time soon. Even Smash rating is dropping fast. Is NBC gonna carry at least one drama into next season?
YES!!!! please keep it coming. I love this show.
yes , i do like the show, primarily because I loved the book and the movie, and the overall concept. Could use a little more ‘something’ but as it is , it is very good.
after reading the info above my DVR will be working overtime to get all 22 episodes for me to watch.
BUT the Firms loss is our GAIN ….AWAKE looks awesome!
We love this show! It is exciting w/ suspense and keeps you guessing about what will happen next. Don’t understand why it is not better liked.
Love this show!!
Please don’t cancel the show, it is very good. Agreed they need to stop moving the show around and give viewers a chance to watch it.