{"id":224319,"date":"2025-10-14T15:51:12","date_gmt":"2025-10-14T15:51:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/224319\/"},"modified":"2025-10-14T15:51:12","modified_gmt":"2025-10-14T15:51:12","slug":"why-cbs-is-doubling-down-on-scripted-content","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/224319\/","title":{"rendered":"Why CBS Is Doubling Down on Scripted Content"},"content":{"rendered":"

CBS<\/a> kicked off a flashy fall premiere week Sunday, using the wide viewership brought by a football doubleheader to launch a week\u2019s worth of new and returning shows with a bang.<\/p>\n

It was a night of two female-led mysteries, as Sunday marked the return of the Emmy-nominated, Kathy Bates-fronted \u201cMatlock\u201d and \u201cThe Good Wife\u201d spinoff series \u201cElsbeth,\u201d about a kooky lawyer who partners with the NYPD to solve murder investigations.<\/p>\n

Both shows carry the signature \u201cCBS show\u201d feeling of a trusty procedural that takes creative swings, and are not coincidentally among the network\u2019s most-watched offerings among broadcasters and overall.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

They\u2019re also programming pillars for CBS, which is coming off its 17th-consecutive season as the most-watched broadcast network. It\u2019s a lofty perch that has allowed the network to bring back beloved shows year after year, a key ingredient to its consistency, but CBS also stands apart in the 2025-26 season in that it\u2019s launching several new shows while other networks fill time slots with cheaper unscripted fare or sports. Given that the Tiffany Network has been home to the most-watched new series for the past nine TV seasons in a row, they\u2019ve earned the benefit of the doubt to keep greenlighting new scripted projects. The CBS machine is working.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re here to reach the biggest audience possible. And clearly, the audience is there for these shows,\u201d CBS entertainment president Amy Reisenbach told TheWrap.<\/p>\n

But there\u2019s added pressure on this week\u2019s launch of new and returning shows. Not even CBS is immune to linear television revenue continuing its year-over-year decline, and parent company Paramount has pledged to cut costs across the board after its merger with production company Skydance. The network\u2019s ratings dominance and George Cheeks \u2014 the sole executive from the prior regime to stay \u2014 still leading CBS likely give the network more stability than other assets in the media empire, but it\u2019s anybody\u2019s guess how deep the cuts will go in the next month.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve definitely had to meet the moment financially, but we\u2019ve worked really closely with the studio to figure out innovative ways to make sure our shows are able to stay viable from a financial perspective, as well as creatively strong,\u201d Reisenbach added.<\/p>\n

All this adds pressure to the success of CBS premiere week, but network executives are confident that its quality programming will keep loyal audiences tuned in.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s so much great television out there right now, but this is really our way of planting our flag and cutting through the noise to say we\u2019re back and we\u2019re back in a big way,\u201d Reisenbach said.<\/p>\n

\"matlock-skye-p-marshall-kathy-bates-cbs\"Skye P. Marshall and Kathy Bates in \u201cMatlock.\u201d (Sonja Flemming\/CBS)<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t mess with success<\/p>\n

From Oct. 12-19, the network will debut 15 new and returning scripted series, the most of any broadcaster this season. Among them are three \u201cNCIS\u201d shows, \u201cFire Country\u201d and its new spinoff \u201cSheriff Country\u201d starring Morena Baccarin, \u201cBig Bang Theory\u201d spinoff \u201cGeorgie & Mandy\u2019s First Marriage,\u201d the popular ensemble comedy \u201cGhosts\u201d and a new \u201cBlue Bloods\u201d spinoff, titled \u201cBoston Blue.\u201d<\/p>\n

The fall lineup also boasts the Taylor Sheridan-produced music competition series \u201cThe Road,\u201d featuring Keith Urban, Blake Shelton and more country stars. There\u2019s also a new workplace comedy set inside a DMV (aptly titled \u201cDMV\u201d) and new seasons of \u201cSurvivor\u201d and \u201cThe Amazing Race.\u201d<\/p>\n

Reisenbach and CBS Studios president David Stapf said the success of their programming is due to the network\u2019s close development relationship with its sibling studio, which helps create shows that draw audiences across platforms.<\/p>\n

Even new Paramount CEO David Ellison boasted about CBS\u2019 fall lineup at Bloomberg Screentime last week, calling it the \u201cstrongest lineup, arguably, in the company\u2019s history.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"david-ellison-bloomberg-screentime\"Paramount CEO David Ellison speaks onstage at Bloomberg Screentime 2025 on Thursday, Oct. 9. (Clark Studio\/Bloomberg Live)<\/p>\n

\u201cThe audience has come to appreciate the consistency, they know they\u2019re going to get quality year after year and show after show,\u201d Stapf told TheWrap in an exclusive interview alongside Reisenbach, who added, \u201cWe\u2019ve continued to evolve the brand, keeping the shows feeling fresh and yet keeping the \u2018CBS show\u2019 feeling and giving the audience more of what they want.\u201d<\/p>\n

The latest example of that strategy is \u201cBoston Blue,\u201d the Donnie Wahlberg-led spinoff born out of the conclusion of \u201cBlue Bloods\u201d after a 14-season run. Reisenbach credited producers and Jerry Bruckheimer Television for finding the right angle to continue the DNA of the beloved Friday night police drama. The new series takes Wahlberg\u2019s Danny Reagan to Boston, where he inadvertently starts a new partnership with Sonequa Martin-Green\u2019s Lena Silver, leading to a mix of police work and family gatherings around a new dinner table.<\/p>\n

\"Top-15-Most-Watched-Broadcast-Shows-2024-25-Season\"(Christopher Smith for TheWrap)<\/p>\n

A fruitful partnership<\/p>\n

CBS\u2019 programming strategy has proven to draw viewership beyond its linear roots. \u201cTracker,\u201d which is produced by 20th Television, and \u201cMatlock\u201d are among the top eight TV shows in total 35-day multiplatform viewing among all streamers and broadcasters. The Justin Hartley-led \u201cTracker\u201d landed third at 17 million viewers last season, behind Netflix\u2019s \u201cSquid Game\u201d and the Emmy-winning \u201cAdolescence,\u201d while \u201cMatlock\u201d landed at No. 8 with an audience of 15.7 million. CBS also has 11 of the top 20 programs in total 35-day multiplatform viewing among broadcasters.<\/p>\n

CBS Studios produces 10 of those 11 series, validating Reisenbach and Stapf\u2019s strategy of leaning on its symbiotic development relationship to deliver hits. That partnership spawned the spinoff series \u201cSheriff Country,\u201d which makes its debut Friday after the Season 4 premiere of its flagship \u201cFire Country.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"sheriff-country-morena-baccarin-matt-lauria-cbs\"Morena Baccarin and Matt Lauria in \u201cSheriff Country\u201d (Brooke Palmer\/CBS)<\/p>\n

The show was first ordered in spring 2024, but Reisenbach opted to wait for a fall 2025 launch to allow the writers to fully bake their ideas for the new show. As the creative team fine-tuned the storyline, the network could seed Baccarin\u2019s Mickey Fox into episodes of \u201cFire Country\u201d to get audiences hooked, while also promoting the show in promos during telecasts of NCAA basketball last spring to raise awareness.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll these things come together to create the best opportunity and platform to launch the show,\u201d Reisenbach said. A similar strategy is in mind for the upcoming \u201cEinstein\u201d drama series<\/a> starring \u201cCriminal Minds\u201d alum Matthew Gray Gubler, which was held for a 2026-27 launch.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe genius of the network is strategically looking at the schedule not just in the immediate but far down the road,\u201d Stapf added. \u201cAmy does a really good job of playing chess with all of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

An uncertain future<\/p>\n

Reisenbach\u2019s latest schedule for CBS charts a programming roadmap through May 2026. Beyond the fall, the network plans to premiere a \u201cYellowstone\u201d spinoff starring Luke Grimes, an \u201cFBI\u201d spinoff set in the CIA and two competition shows \u201cHarlan Coben\u2019s Final Twist\u201d and Padma Lakshmi\u2019s \u201cAmerica\u2019s Culinary Cup.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSuvivor\u201d will air its 50th season in the first half of 2026 and \u201cBig Brother\u201d host Julie Chen Moonves assured fans that the summertime competition show would be back for another season next year, though an official renewal has yet to be announced.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t see the shows going anywhere,\u201d Reisenbach said of the CBS unscripted staples, which also includes \u201cThe Amazing Race.\u201d Reisenbach and Stapf also set new contract extensions<\/a> at CBS ahead of the Skydance merger to remain by Cheeks\u2019 side at the helm of Paramount\u2019s broadcast arm for at least the next three years.<\/p>\n

\"survivor-jeff-probst-castaways-cbs\"Jeff Probst and Season 49 castaways on \u201cSurvivor\u201d (Robert Voets\/CBS)<\/p>\n

But the future is uncertain. The promise of cuts looms as Ellison and new leadership focus on bolstering Paramount+ \u2014 which benefits from strong viewership of CBS content \u2014 along with its film slate. Cheeks also spoke previously of Paramount\u2019s interest in adding more sports programming, signaling a potential for fewer slots in the network\u2019s schedule should more sports rights come flooding in.<\/p>\n

As for late night, Reisenbach told TheWrap it\u2019s too soon for them to share what will happen with the \u201cLate Show\u201d timeslot after Colbert signs off, \u201cWe\u2019re grateful to have the opportunity to celebrate Colbert\u2019s final season with him.\u201d<\/p>\n

CBS brass is optimistic the broadcast network\u2019s track record will keep it from total transformation.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe new leadership doesn\u2019t feel new in the sense that they come from the same place we do. Skydance was a production company \u2014 a really good one \u2014 and we speak the same language,\u201d Stapf said. \u201cThey really have shown a tremendous amount of appreciation for what we all do at both the studio and the network.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\t
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