It’s the news Smash fans everywhere have been waiting for. NBC has announced that they will be renewing their musical drama, Smash, for a second season, set to air in the 2012-13 television season. Season 1, currently running, airs its finale on May 14 with returning guest appearances by Nick Jonas and Bernadette Peters, as well as the end of Uma Thurman’s five episode arc.
There has been much speculation lately over whether NBC would renew the series. The struggling network had been banking on the success of The Voice and Smash, both paired together on the same night. The Voice has been a success, even beating its original counterpart, American Idol, in the ratings on some weeks.
Smash, on the other hand, started out strong with 11 million viewers, but seemed to falter in the weeks following. The good news is that Smash has stabled overall, averaging 7.7 million viewers. While that is lower than its premiere numbers, compare that to the ratings that this NBC timeslot had previously been receiving: 3.9 million. This jump is certainly strong enough for a renewal. The network, as well as fans, are hoping that the ratings will grow with time.
Bob Greenblatt, NBC’s president of programming, recently said that he was “not at all disappointed in [Smash‘s] performance. The expectations were never that Smash would be the biggest hit on television.” He goes on to say this: “But two years ago NBC wasn’t even programming dramas at 10pm. To go from that to a 2.3 rating is a compete success.” That 2.3 average is now at 2.6.
Before today’s announcement, what did Greenblatt think of the show’s chances of renewal? Reuters reported that “Greenblatt said the answer is most likely yes, but he did not rule out moving the show to a new day or time next season.”
Even though having The Voice as a lead-in is fantastic, it wouldn’t come as a shock if NBC did in fact move Smash to a new day or time. In an attempt to garner more viewers, NBC could very well move it to a 9pm timeslot when more people are watching TV live.
Are you excited that Smash has been renewed? Is this a decision of confidence on the part of the network that the show can grow and gain new viewers? And do you think NBC would ever move it to a new night?
(Image courtesy of NBC)
Staff Writer, BuddyTV
Jeff Dodge, a graduate of Western Washington University, has been a TV news editor for many years and has had the chance to interview multiple reality show stars, including Randy Jackson, Nick Cannon, Heidi Klum, Mel B and John Cena.
