Could it be that the far-too-long reign of reality shows on American television is ending, finally? I, for one, can only hope so! A close look and in depth analysis of pilot orders by Barclays Capital analyst Anthony DiClemente, ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox have ordered a total of 84 pilots, and of those 44 are comedies. Last year, the big four ordered 81 pilots, of which 34 were comedies. The drama orders are basically flat, with 35 ordered this spring compared to 34 last year. DiClemente did not include the CW, but that network has six drama pilots. The CW does not program comedies, at least not on purpose.
Taking a massive hit are these awful reality shows. DiClemente, who is sourcing the trades, says there are only five unscripted shows in development at ABC, CBS and NBC combined. Fox has none for the fall but a few for the spring. What a relief! The CW has four reality show possibilities for the fall. Last year at this time, there were already 13 unscripted shows in development for fall on the big four. Of course, keep in mind reality shows don't always require quite the prep time as traditional sitcoms and comedies. Murdoch's Fox has ordered the most comedy pilots, with 13 in the works, per the report. Disney's ABC, which has already said it will bring back three of its Wednesday night comedies ("Modern Family," "Cougar Town" and "The Middle") for second seasons has 12 comedy pilots, while (GE's) NBC has 11. CBS, which has the fewest holes to fill, ordered just eight sitcoms.
While too many analysts try to identify trends with what genres are being ordered, it often has just as much to do with what an individual network needs at a given time. Last year, NBC ordered only 15 pilots because it was banking on Jay Leno filling the 10 p.m. hour. We all know now how that turned out. This year it has ordered 22, including 11 dramas.
Owning your own content is still a big and necessary priority for the networks. Even NBC, which has obviously struggled this season, has 14 pilots that are in-house. Of Fox's 17 pilots, 11 are in-house. Anyone for some laughs this fall? It seems the networks are betting on it. What do you see for the future of programming on the big four? Are you as burned out on reality shows as I obviously am? Feel free to let me know your thoughts via email, I always welcome your viewpoints.
