“NCIS” is one of the greatest success stories in television history, but like countless other long-running shows still on the air, it’s showing its age.
The CBS show’s ratings have dropped to around 5.2 million this season, with a 0.36 rating among adults 18-49.
That number means it ranks seventh among the 16 scripted series the network has scheduled this season.
Taking into account a week of DVR, “NCIS” Season 22’s viewership rose to 7.6 million viewers and a 0.52 rating, but the show was down more than 20% compared to last year.
That means there’s a real chance CBS could consider abandoning the mothership.
Twenty-two seasons is a milestone that few shows reach, but it wouldn’t be possible without loyal fans watching for so long.
The success of the series is NCIS: Los Angeles, NCIS: New Orleans, NCIS: Hawaii, NCIS: Sydney and NCIS: Tony & “Ziwa” paved the way.
While it’s clear that the series has seen better days, it’s unclear what the future of NCIS will look like.
CBS has made headlines in recent years for canceling long-running shows like “Blue Bloods” and “NCIS: Los Angeles,” so nothing is off the table right now.
The season’s lower-than-expected performance could be attributed to a variety of factors, but long-running shows tend to go downhill in their final years, which is a bad sign since veteran shows have bigger budgets.
CBS makes some controversial decisions about long-running series
Sometimes networks part ways with proven franchises because they’re no longer more valuable than trying out a slew of new shows, and CBS found great success this season with the renewal of “Matlock.”
The Kathy Bates-led reboot averaged 10 million viewers and a 0.6 rating when factoring in DVR ratings for the week, so its quick renewal makes sense.
Despite a short-term uptick in creative prowess after Gary Cole took over from original cast member Mark Harmon, NCIS’ creatives have long struggled At a standstill.
The series probably saved a ton of changes when Mark decided to leave, and honestly, when you consider the ratings, we don’t think the series would have survived as long as it did if he hadn’t left.
The NCIS brand is recognized globally, so CBS wants to capitalize on the franchise for as long as possible.
Unfortunately, current numbers suggest there may not be enough gas in the tank to last another season.
Paramount+ is already testing the weight of the series with the exclusive streaming of NCIS: Tony & Ziva .
However, considering the “Family” reboot was just canceled after two seasons, the streaming service may not be the savior of the well-known series as initially thought.
Of course, many platforms initially spend more on content than they make in the hope of attracting viewers.
Still, services are cutting back on spending today as the market is proving more difficult than it was a few years ago.
The NCIS universe is disappearing
The NCIS franchise is slowly dying, and it’s a good sign that audiences are ignoring NCIS: Origins.
Starring Austin Stowell, this prequel features a young Leroy Jethro Gibbs and has a decent plot. If Gibbs can’t attract a decent audience, what hope is there for the rest of the franchise?
NCIS’ numbers don’t put it in the cancelable range just yet, but we wouldn’t be too surprised if CBS picked the 23rd and final season to wrap up the storyline for good.
The network has proven that spinoffs can be expendable with last-minute cancellations, so executives may decide to end NCIS for good soon.
That said, there’s every reason to believe these characters will appear in other shows.
Still, after NCIS: Los Angeles’ LL Cool J moved on to NCIS: Hawaii, the sun-kissed spinoff got its stamp of approval, and long-time fans probably won’t hold their breath waiting to get anything of substance. Sexual content.
What are your thoughts on the current state of NCIS? Do you think the quality of the show warrants a few more seasons?
now you! Please share your thoughts below. Let’s start the conversation!
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Can CBS afford to cancel NCIS? appeared first on TV Fanatic.
