NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: In a shocking move, Disney-owned broadcast network ABC has shelved four of its contended pilots, exhausting the list of its possible upcoming shows. This seems to have become a trend as the network made this announcement soon after NBC canceled three shows.
ABC is yet to give a comment on one of the pilots which will be a spinoff ‘The Good Doctor’ titled ‘The Good Lawyer’. The following seasons of other shows are also awaiting a final decision.
Is there little hope for the short-lived dramas?
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the four shelved pilots are the two dramas ‘The Hurt Unit’ and ‘Judgement’ along with the comedy series ‘Keeping It Together’ (previously named ‘Drop-Off’) and ‘Public Defenders’. ‘The Hurt Unit’, which was set to star Ben Mackenzie and Michelle Ortiz, will be shopped off by the producers ABC Signature. ‘Public Defenders’ and ‘Judgement’ will be picked up by Disney’s 20th Television. As of now, there is no news on the status of ‘Keeping it Together’.
‘Public Defenders’ was going to be a legal comedy, while ‘Keeping it Together’ was to focus on parenthood with a comic take. ‘Judgement’, as the name suggests, was also going to be a legal drama, while ‘The Hurt Unit’ would take up the medical drama genre.
‘High Potential’ starring ‘It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia’ fame Kaitlin Olson is ABC’s only originally scripted series that will be part of their fall schedule. along with that, the network is still considering the 'The Rookie' spinoff 'Feds' for its next season.
Reason behind multiple cancellations
This “trend” of networks canceling full lists of pilots and barely being able to green-light new projects has very tangible reasons behind it. One of them is the WGA strike that has been active for the past almost two months with no signs of halting as a final negotiation is yet to be finalized. The long overdue strike has resulted in many shows getting delayed, canceled, and ending up in a hiatus.
Another union of performing artists SAG-AFTRA has already authorized a union-wide strike if the negotiations with studios do not provide a favorable outcome. The union has similar demands as WGA that are related to economic fairness and the employment of Artificial Intelligence in the creative processes of shows and films.
Besides the strikes, the networks have to also face the expiration dates of keeping the actors while the pilot awaits approval. During this period, the actors are also paid for forgoing any other project in case the pilot were to be approved which is not really profitable given the circumstances of Hollywood at the moment.
