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That was the first indication of a shift in the networks development strategy.
What is the strategy behind having the new 2024-25 lineup firmed up so early?
REISENBACH: Its a couple of factors.
“Tracker,” “Elsbeth,” “Matlock” & “Poppa’s House” (inset) Amy ReisenbachCBS
Obviously,MatlockandPoppas Housewe had intended to premiere earlier.
How do we think more long-term?
I want to give you a couple of examples.
‘So help me Todd’: Marcia Gay Harden as Margaret and Skylar Astin as Todd. Photo: Michael Courtney/CBSMichael Courtney/CBS
And so we developedMatlockandElsbeth.But we had this great script,Watson.
And thats what we did.
And we had great material from Craig Sweeny.
It allowed us to go out and woo Morris Chestnut who were just over the moon about.
Its going to make us much more efficient in production.
Trackeris another perfect example of that.
That pilot came in I think Week 1 or Week 2 of me taking over.
We said lets hold this for the following season.
We dropped the first spots forTrackerin March Madness last spring.
Thats a long ramp-up marketing in a way that weve not done before.
Obviously well be promotingElsbeth,which will be coming on air after March Madness as well.
Were already talking about 25-26; weve never been able to think that far ahead.
And its really because the building blocks were there to begin with.
Justins been on after the Super Bowl before withThis Is Us[in 2018].
It has such broad appeal both for men and women.
I dont think theres a more perfect show to come on right after that game.
And weve got the game of our dreams with the 49ers and the Chiefs.
Every promo youve seen has been all about premiere launch, and its for the whole week.
Im such a broadcast cheerleader.
So, many props to NBC for getting their shows on.
I was thrilled to see howLaw & OrderandChicagocame back.
We can feel it, and our expectation is were going have a great week.
You will have no pilots this season.
How was the decision made on that?
REISENBACH: I think it was a decision based on the pieces that we had in place.
We want to be flexible.
REISENBACH: Its really project to project.
Its just being as flexible as possible.
DEADLINE:And the projects opening rooms could be drama or comedy?
REISENBACH: They could be either, for sure.
DEADLINE:Of your existing rooms, isThe Pactstill active?
REISENBACH: Absolutely,The Pactis very much active.
We brought on Ayanna Floyd whos co-writing with Marcus Dalzine.
The Pactis very much a priority for us.
And yes, thats a perfect example of something that were targeting more for 25-26 at this point.
REISENBACH: Were still getting all of our pieces in place.
As of now, Im not anticipating additional pickups for next year.
But theres always a chance.
Again, that goes to we want to be flexible.
We want to be open minded.
We dont want to be held to the traditional way.
What has been the response from the TV creative community?
REISENBACH: Yes, were looking at 25-26.
That pop in of process works, but also doing a development room works.
We take that on and we love that challenge and I think so does everybody else.
DEADLINE:We talked about the impact of the pandemic, which wiped out the 2020 pilot season.
Is this the final blow to the traditional broadcast cycle, the point of no return?
Or is it something that has already been going on, so the timing is more of a coincidence?
REISENBACH: I lean more towards the coincidence.
Our goal is to continue to do the normal development cycle.
And were still committed to unscripted as well, that still remains a priority.
We haveThe Summitcoming, which were really excited about.
Thats something were looking forward to doing more of in the future.
DEADLINE:Lessons from the fall.
REISENBACH: Ill just start withNCIS: Origins.
No, that was in development prior to that.
AndSydneyhad obviously been in the works for quite a while.
I think we learned that we can experiment.
I think it shows the power of CBS.
Were thrilled with howNCIS: Sydneydid.
REISENBACH: If the right project comes up, absolutely.
Were thrilled with the success ofNCIS: Sydney.
DEADLINE:Can you tease something about moreNCIS: Sydneyon CBS?
REISENBACH: I feel really positive and there will be news to come soon.
DEADLINE:In terms ofNCIS, how long do you think the mothership can go?
It is the longest-running CBS scripted series at 20 seasons.
REISENBACH: I dont see it slowing down anytime soon.
Its a fantastic cast with a fantastic writing staff thats been there a really long time.
So, as long as they want to keep it going, were thrilled to be on theNCIStrain.
So we hope to continue on for quite a while.
How do you make these decisions?
Are they largely financial or are you examining it from different angles?
Has your background as a current executive been helpful to look at the trajectory of the series?
We saw what happened toBob Hearts Abishola, which is ending with Season 5 after a major budget cut.
How much do you have to keep an eye on that?
Thats the kind of ending that when shows end we want to give them.
DEADLINE: You spoke of giving departing shows a long runway.
REISENBACH: Im not ready to talk about that yet, to be honest.
Id like to get through our launch before we start looking at that.
DEADLINE:In todays environment, can shows that premiere today last for 7-10 seasons and beyond?
Speaking again about the economics and how things change quickly, what do you expect?
Is it harder in todays environment to attempt to make those deals?
But it would be naive to say that these things arent always challenging.
REISENBACH:Were 100% committed to the 10 oclock hour, its not going anywhere.
So its factoring in that, yes.
Talk about the importance of IP and getting those packages in place?
Every show is a risk so having these elements in place, it does up our chances of success.
Tom SellecksBlue Bloodsis ending butMatlockwith Kathy Bates is joining other shows you have on the schedule with older leads.
Talk about CBS continuing to defy convention of what a leading man or woman on television should be like?
REISENBACH: For us, it is all about the content.
And we said, this is a fantastic script, absolutely.
Honestly, when we read the script, we all thought Kathy Bates would kill this.
I dont think we ever think about it in terms of oh, we need to cast somebody younger.
We want to cast the right person for the right role.
DEADLINE:What was the most surprising part of the job a year and a couple months in?
Everybody has been here for so long.
When youre head of current, my favorite part about current is the fact that you work with everybody.
Not only are the shows premiering well on broadcast, but theyre driving content on streaming.
