TV Revivals Maintain Getting Greenlit … and Canceled

TV’s IP fetish is not any coincidence. Recognizable titles and stars can assure robust preliminary tune-in off of modest advertising. However long-term outcomes are lackluster. Simply have a look at the previous decade’s value of revivals. Completely different from reboots or remakes, dangerous ventures in their very own proper, a revival options unique castmembers of long-departed sequence revisiting characters for whom there’s an assumed urge for food. Viewers aren’t typically as hungry as studio brass would love. The typical life span of current revivals is three seasons, whereas their originals averaged eight-year runs. In order Paramount+ kicks off October by nixing one revived comedy (iCarly, starring Miranda Cosgrove, above) and trying to mount one other (Frasier with Kelsey Grammer, which premiered Oct. 12), The Hollywood Reporter examines 10 case research from this revivals wave and the place they went proper … or horribly improper.

Dallas
Unique: 14 seasons (1978-1991)
Revival: 3 seasons (2012-2014)

Sitcoms proceed to drive the revival development, however Dallas deserves credit score for kicking it off. The brand new spin on the long-lasting primetime cleaning soap was initially pay filth for TNT, however curiosity waned because it struggled to marry outdated and new characters and the painful snip of cord-cutting prompted the cable channel to tug again from scripted TV.

Evening Courtroom
Unique: 9 seasons (1984-1992)
Revival: 1 season (thus far) (2023-present)

Setting a report for many watched broadcast comedy premiere in 5 years isn’t as thrilling because it as soon as was. However the 7.5 million tune-in for Evening Courtroom, with John Larroquette (one of many few surviving unique solid), means a couple of extra years of this development. Scores sank all through the run, however NBC shortly ordered a season two.

Full Home/Fuller Home
Unique: 8 seasons (1987-1995)
Revival: 5 seasons (2016-2020)

Fixing life’s issues in tight half-hour episodes, Netflix’s Full Home retread was extra dramatic off digicam. Creator Jeff Franklin was fired for accusations of being a jerk, and, after 75 episodes, not a single Olsen twin got here again to an in any other case full reunion. None of that bothered the streamer. Fuller Home was large with youthful viewers. 

Roseanne/The Conners 
Unique: 9 seasons (1988-1997)
Revival: 6 seasons (thus far) (2018-present)

Virtually 20 million viewers — in 2018! — turned on ABC to observe Roseanne Barr’s return. She may have saved broadcast TV, however her racist Twitter habits killed these possibilities … and her character on the present. As soon as Barr was contractually expelled, Roseanne rebranded as The Conners; it continues to carry out solidly with out her.

Saved by the Bell
Unique: 4 seasons (1989-1993)
Revival: 2 seasons (2020-2021)

They bought a lot of the band again collectively, discovered a author with an A+ comedy pedigree (30 Rock alum Tracey Wigfield) and managed to win over critics with subversive social commentary, however the brand new Saved by the Bell by no means stood an opportunity on early-days Peacock. A couple of years may have made all of the distinction.

Mad About You
Unique: 8 seasons (1992-1999)
Revival: 1 season (2019)

Oof. This one had all the pieces working towards it. The brand new Mad About You needed to ret-con its divisive unique NBC finale, win again critics who cried “Revival overload!” at information of its return and discover an viewers on Spectrum — a platform the overwhelming majority of Individuals don’t have. It by no means stood an opportunity.

Will & Grace
Unique: 8 seasons (1998-2006)
Revival: 3 seasons (2017-2020)

Full solid? Test. Sturdy premiere viewers? Yep, almost 11 million viewers. Lasting energy? Not a lot. NBC anticipated one other long term for the landmark queer comedy, however scores waned 70 % within the first six months. Earlier than the third season aired, star Sean Hayes introduced that it could be the final. For actual this time.

Murphy Brown
Unique: 10 seasons (1988-1998)
Revival: 1 season (2018-2019)

Creator Diane English and star Candice Bergen assumed their fictional TV anchor may skewer the Trump presidency very similar to they did the primary Bush administration. What they didn’t anticipate was that a lot of their unique CBS viewers had both gone MAGA or, you already know, died. The brand new Murphy Brown was DOA.

Intercourse and the Metropolis / And Simply Like That
Unique: 6 seasons (1998-2004)
Revival: 2 seasons (thus far) (2021-present)

Adore it or like to hate it, this new spin on Intercourse and the Metropolis is a business success — rating as Max’s most streamed unique sequence to this point. A few of its harshest critics appeared to melt their sizzling takes in season two, however they’ll have an opportunity to alter their minds once more. It’s been renewed. 

That’s So Raven / Raven’s Residence 
Unique: 4 seasons (2003-2007)
Revival: 6 seasons (thus far) (2017-present)

Maybe solely Raven herself would have had “short-lived The View panelist revisits position of teenage psychic for the one replace to outlast its unique” on her revival bingo card. Raven-Symoné’s Raven’s Residence outpaced childhood gig That’s So Raven by two seasons — and one other isn’t off the desk but.

This story first appeared within the Oct. 11 problem of The Hollywood Reporter journal. Click on right here to subscribe.