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.
Boy, NBC reallly knows how to knock them down. I remember going through this with Friday Night Lights, another great show that was torpedoed by the brain trusts that run this network. Do we really need another reality/competition/psychodrama like the Voice, Biggest Loser, et.al? I am so sick of television taking the least expensive, least thought-provoking, dumbed-down way out and spoon-feeding us the ridiculous pablum we’re offered. Memo to NBC, CBS, ABC – the reason your audiences are falling away like yesterday’s news is that we’re smarter than you give us credit for, and deserve better than these hokey reality… Read more »
I WAS VERY DISAPPOINTED WHEN THE FIRM DID NOT COME ON THIS PAST THURSDAY. IT IS GREAT TO HAVE SUCH AN EXCITING AND DESCENT SHOW TO LOOK AT. THE EXCITEMENT KEPT ME WAITING UNTIL THE NEXT TIME. I HOPE THAT IT’S RATINGS GO UP, I REALLY ENJOYED THIS SHOW.
I really really like this show and hope it doesn’t get cancelled. First new show in a while I enjoy watching!
The Firm is one of the few TV programs worth watching on TV these days. It’s right up there with “Revenge” and “Person of Interest” on competitor networks. Hoping that more viewers will find the way to seeing this program as something worth while to watch on TV.
This is the only show I watch on NBC besides celebrity apprentice. They put it on a hard time slot with shows that have been around for a long time.
I like the show, I hope it continues. Glad to hear at least we get the full 22.
I really liked the Tv series. Its alot better than some the shows that are on that’s not worth watching. Its pretty damn bad that you have a show that you like and they have to take it off the air and leave these stupid ones that shouldn’t even be on the air on Tv. They keep on taking shows off there won’t anything good on to watch that’s ACTUALLY WORTH IT!!
I do like “The Firm” and hope it continues. It is well acted with a nice blend of action and drama.
My husband and I really enjoy this show and the network canceling it -wrong,. give it a chance. Josh Lucas is awesome in this show and the story lines are well written and its really nice to have an adult drama on instead of having to suffer through another reality tv show Had NBC promoted the show and if they will start promoting the show, more people will tune in, we found it by accident and have watched it every week since. If they proceed with the cancellation, we will just go back to CBS for our weekly dose of… Read more »
I really liked the series – I’ve found it suspenseful – I’ve like the ethical bent – I guess I’m not the norm – because several of my favorite shows have been cancelled this year – hmmm – too bad!
My wife and I have been regular watchers of “The Firm” and do enjoy what we have seen so far. We tuned in last night at 10pm only to see “The Voice” on and we had a feeling something had happened. I checked the TV listings for the week and did see “The Firm” listed in its regular spot. So I went on MSN this morning to find out what had happened. Putting in on at 9pm on a Saturday night is pretty much the end of the series. We will continue to watch it with hopes that the ratings… Read more »
We like the episodes we have seen. Josh Lucas is very good as Mitch. If people will set their DVRs for nine on Sat., no problem. Blue Bloods is on Friday and it has been and it a hit. Glad we can look forward to a full season.
I’m with all the other posters I’ve read. I think this show is quite good. It’s got suspense. And I think now with the 6th episode having caught up with the timeline it will get better. But, with it being exiled to Saturday’s there is really no chance of anyone really starting to watch it and like it. I mean, Saturday. That’s bad. Real real bad. I mean, when you get moved to Friday it’s never good. But SATURDAY. There are like absolutely no shows that air new episodes on Saturdays. Other than SNL. So I’m not exactly optimistic. And… Read more »
It is Thursday night and the show, the voice, came on in place of the firm. I love “the voice,” but I kept repeating – “what happened to the firm?” I know that the voice will be on on Mondays and I have just read that the firm may not last very long. The firm is great and I really look forward to it. Great acting, great suspense, love it. Please keep it.
I do not enjoy Grimm.
The Firm is one of the only shows on TV worth watching along with the Good Wife. After not watching any network shows for the last few years, finally NBC made
something worth watching. Take it away and we go away, that simple.