NBC has said “so long” to “Southland,” but the gritty cop show is hoping for a second chance somewhere else.
Although six episodes were commissioned, NBC cancelled the Jon Wells-produced show last week, less than two and a half weeks before its scheduled second season premiere date.
The Hollywood Reporter says that early screened scenes were “too dark and gritty” for the 9 p.m. hour on broadcast television. Instead of reworking it though, the network replaced the series with cheaper-to-produce episodes of “Dateline NBC,” which has been pulling in similar viewership numbers as the drama series did last season.
Now, “Southland” creators are scrambling to sell the series to a cable network, hoping to find a home for the unaired episodes that are already in the can, according to the Los Angeles Times.
With A&E having reportedly already passed on the critically-acclaimed, but little watched series, the show is now eyeing TNT as a likely landing spot.
The cable network is owned by Time Warner, which also owns Warner Bros., the studio that produced “Southland.”
Because of the corporate family ties, TNT would make economic sense, too, since Warner Bros. has already gotten paid by NBC for the episodes — to the tune of a reported $1.5 million per episode — meaning that the studio might be willing to sell the show to the network for less cash.
Should the series prove to be a success on TNT, which has previously had hits with cop dramas “The Closer” and “Saving Grace,” leading to a series pick-up, the studio can always ask for more money then.
It’s not unheard of for a network to pick up a cancelled series from another network.
When NBC declined to pick up another season of “Medium” for the fall, CBS — which produces the series — snapped it up for its own fall season, where it’s averaging slightly more viewers than it did on its former network.