CBS Boss: ‘I Sympathize’ With Fans Disappointed by Our Cancelled Shows

CBS Entertainment president Amy Reisenbach shared that she and other executives at America’s Most Watched Network faced sleepless nights and tough decisions while determining which shows to cancel this spring.

“I’m a big fan of TV first, and I sympathize and relate to all the fans out there who are disappointed that these shows are ending,” Reisenbach said on Tuesday at the Banff World Media Festival, according to Variety. “But at the end of the day, our job at CBS is to make those really tough calls,” she added, echoing her comments from May at CBS’ fall schedule reveal event.

In April, CBS canceled several shows, including CSI: Vegas (after three seasons), So Help Me Todd (after two seasons), and NCIS: Hawai’i (after three seasons). The network later announced a fall schedule featuring two new dramas — NCIS: Origins (the Young Gibbs prequel spinoff) and Kathy Bates’ Matlock — with Sunday nights concluding with drama reruns.

“We toss and turn and have sleepless nights and have endless discussions” about cancellations and renewals, “but we look at all of the numbers,” Reisenbach said at Banff. “We look at our projections for the future and where we see opportunities for potentially even bigger success on the schedule.”

NCIS: Hawai’i averaged 7.81 million total viewers this past TV season (with Live+7 playback), up 4% from its Season 2 audience and ranking No. 6 out of the 14 dramas CBS aired. CSI: Vegas, averaging 6.1 million viewers, was similarly up 7% year-over-year but drew the smallest audience of any CBS drama. So Help Me Todd, with 6.2 million viewers, was down 3% from its freshman season, ranking No. 12 out of 14 CBS dramas.

“It is incumbent on us to always keep the schedule fresh and keep momentum going,” Reisenbach said back in May. “Everything came back really strong from the Hollywood strikes, but ultimately we have to look at the cohesiveness of the schedule flow, evaluate the financials and the overall performance, and make tough decisions.”

Among CBS’ returning series, Blue Bloods is heading into the final half of its farewell season this fall. Despite cast members, including Tom Selleck, lobbying for a longer farewell run, Reisenbach confirmed last month that there are no plans to renew the long-running cop/family drama. “We love this cast, and we love their passion for the show,” she noted. “We are going to end the show come December.”