News / TV

Upfronts Follow-Up: The realities of pilot season and the odds of making a hit sitcom (2013-2017)

The annual song and dance of broadcast network Upfronts presentations sells advertisers on the need each May to book their 30 and 60-second commercials in primetime on their TV networks come September, with appearances by each network’s big stars and news personalities to make them feel all warm and fuzzy and keep spending their money. It’s all very meta. A TV network advertising its wares to advertisers.

And increasingly desperate. For both parties. Because we’re shifting ever more away from appointment television and toward completely On Demand (read: streaming) viewing of television.

But still, they persisted.

We all still make a grand deal about all of this for good reasons. Development deals mean money. Script deals mean more money for writers and show creators. A pilot order means even more money, and the possibility of a full series. A series order means not only an invitation to Upfronts for more wining and dining, but the chance to staff up your show with a writer’s room and full crew. Wait, though. Did your series make the Fall schedule? Or is it being held for midseason? Does it get a date on the schedule sometime, somewhere, ever? Are you still waiting for your series to air when the next May Upfronts come along? The odds are truly long, and though there’s plenty of cash (which means rent money in many cases) thrown around, and even more posts and articles for the entertainment trade magazines and blogs that you can share with your friends and family on Facebook and Twitter, what does it all mean in the end? For the hundreds of development deals the broadcast networks ink each year, how many of those culminate in an actual TV series, and how many of those make it past their rookie seasons?

Here’s a look at how ABC, CBS, FOX and NBC have treated sitcom pilots over the past five years (the CW is excluded, although duly noted for their current hours which could be considered comedies, My Crazy Ex-Girlfriend and Jane the Virgin), along with video trailers for the new sitcoms ordered this week for 2017-2018.

ABC

2013

  • PILOTS (12): Back in the Game, Bad Management, Divorce: A Love Story, The Goldbergs, The Crazy Gene, Middle Age Rage, Mixology, Pulling, Spy, Super Fun Night, Trophy Wife, King John
  • ORDERED (5): Back in the Game, The Goldbergs, Mixology, Super Fun Night, Trophy Wife
  • RENEWED (1): The Goldbergs
  • STILL ON (1): The Goldbergs

2014

  • PILOTS (13): An American Education, Black-ish, Cristela, Damaged Goods, Fresh Off the Boat, Galavant, Irreversible, Saint Francis, Selfie, Untitled Brian Gallivan, Manhattan Love Story, Keep It Together, The Winklers
  • ORDERED (6): blackish, Cristela, Fresh Off the Boat, Galavant, Manhattan Love Story, Selfie
  • RENEWED (3): blackish, Fresh Off the Boat, Galavant
  • STILL ON (2): blackish, Fresh Off the Boat

2015

  • PILOTS (14): Chevy, Delores & Jermaine, Family Fortune, The 46 Percenters, Irreversible, The King of 7B, Untitled Johnny Knoxville, Untitled Judah Miller, Untitled Molyneux, Untitled NBA, Dr. Ken, The Real O’Neals, The Muppets, Uncle Buck
  • ORDERED (4): Dr. Ken, The Real O’Neals, The Muppets, Uncle Buck
  • RENEWED (2): Dr. Ken, The Real O’Neals
  • STILL ON (0): none

2016

  • PILOTS (12): Chunk & Bean, Downward Dog, American Housewife, Speechless, Imaginary Mary, Dream Team, The Fluffy Shop, Hail Mary, Pearl, Square Roots, Toast, Untitled Weeks & Mackay
  • ORDERED (4): Downward Dog, American Housewife, Speechless, Imaginary Mary
  • RENEWED/STILL ON (2): American Housewife, Speechless
  • ON THE BUBBLE/JUST AIRING NOW (1): Downward Dog

2017

  • PILOTS (12): Charlie Foxtrot, The Goldbergs spinoff, Household Name (redeveloping), Jalen vs. Everybody, Libby and Malcolm, Losing It, Raised By Wolves, Splitting Up Together, Alex Inc., The Mayor, Untitled Single Dad (redeveloping), Roseanne (straight to series revival)
  • ORDERED (4): Splitting Up Together, Alex Inc., The Mayor, Roseanne
  • ON THE FALL SCHEDULE (1): The Mayor

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agZ7_ADYxJM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtbzQi6c9mM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j91FK6K-8Dg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDMhiFGls48

CBS

 

2013

  • PILOTS (12): Bad Teacher, Crazy Ones, We Are Men, Friends with Better Lives, Jacked Up, Mom, The McCarthys, Super Clyde, The Millers, Untitled Jim Gaffigan, Untitled Rottenberg & Zuritzsky, Untitled Tad Quill
  • ORDERED (6): Bad Teacher, Crazy Ones, We Are Men, Friends with Better Lives, Mom, The Millers
  • RENEWED (2): Mom, The Millers
  • STILL ON (1): Mom

2014

  • PILOTS: Cuz-Bros, Good Session, How I Met Your Dad, The McCarthys, The Mistake, More Time With Family, The Odd Couple, Save the Date, Taxi-22, Untitled Jim Gaffigan
  • ORDERED (2): The McCarthys, The Odd Couple
  • RENEWED (1): The Odd Couple
  • STILL ON (0): none

2015

  • PILOTS (9): Angel From Hell, The Half of It, Happy Life, Life in Pieces, The Mistake, Super Clyde, Taxi-22, Untitled O’Shannon/Warren, Untitled Tommy Johnagin
  • ORDERED (2): Angel From Hell, Life in Pieces
  • RENEWED (1): Life in Pieces
  • STILL ON (1): Life in Pieces

2016

  • PILOTS (9): The Kicker, My Time/Your Time, Furst Born, Real Good People, What Goes Around Comes Around, Kevin Can Wait, Man With A Plan, The Great Indoors, Superior Donuts
  • ORDERED (4): The Great Indoors, Man With a Plan, Superior Donuts, Kevin Can Wait
  • RENEWED/STILL ON (3): Kevin Can Wait, Superior Donuts, Man With a Plan

2017

  • PILOTS: 9J,9K, and 9L, Brothered Up, Distefano, Hannah Royce’s Questionable Choices, By the Book, Me, Myself and I, Real Life, Young Sheldon (ordered straight series)
  • ORDERED (4): 9J,9K, and 9L, By the Book, Me, Myself & I, Young Sheldon
  • ON THE FALL SCHEDULE (3): 9J,9K, and 9L; Me, Myself & I; Young Sheldon

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPYegZi4R8E

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XR-jIhwIfIw

FOX

 

2013

  • PILOTS (8): Dads (straight series), Enlisted, Us and Them, The Gabriels, Surviving Jack, Untitled Bilsing-Graham and Kreamer, Two Wrongs, Brooklyn Nine-Nine
  • ORDERED (5): Dads, Enlisted, Us and Them, Surviving Jack, Brooklyn Nine-Nine
  • RENEWED (1): Brooklyn Nine-Nine
  • STILL ON (1): Brooklyn Nine-Nine

2014

  • PILOTS (8): Cabot College, Dead Boss, Fatrick, No Place Like Home, The Last Man on Earth, Mulaney, Sober Companion, Weird Loners (straight series)
  • ORDERED (3): The Last Man on Earth, Mulaney, Weird Loners
  • RENEWED (1): The Last Man on Earth
  • STILL ON (1): The Last Man on Earth

2015

  • PILOTS (8): Cooper Barrett’s Guide to Surviving Life, Detour, Fantasy Life, 48 Hours ‘Til Monday, The Grinder, The Perfect Stanleys, Scream Queens, Grandfathered
  • ORDERED (4): Cooper Barrett’s Guide to Surviving Life, The Grinder, Scream Queens, Grandfathered
  • RENEWED (1): Scream Queens
  • STILL ON (0): none

2016

  • PILOTS (8): Chad: An American Boy, Charity Case, The Enforcers, Havoc, HR, Making History, The Mick, Son of Zorn
  • ORDERED (3): Making History, The Mick, Son of Zorn
  • RENEWED/STILL ON (1): The Mick

2017

  • PILOTS: Amy’s Brother, Ghosted, LA to Vegas, Linda From HR, Thin Ice, Type-A
  • ORDERED (2): Ghosted, LA to Vegas
  • ON THE FALL SCHEDULE (1): Ghosted

NBC

 

2013

  • PILOTS (16): About a Boy, Assistance, Brenda Forever, The Donor Party, Drop-Off, Girlfriend in a Coma, Holding Patterns, Joe & Joe & Jane, Undateable, Growing Up Fisher, Downtowners, Mulaney, The Michael J. Fox Show (straight series), Mr. Robinson, Sean Saves the World, Welcome to the Family
  • ORDERED (6): About a Boy, Growing Up Fisher, The Michael J. Fox Show, Sean Saves the World, Undateable, Welcome to the Family
  • RENEWED (2): About a Boy, Undateable
  • STILL ON (0): none

2014

  • PILOTS (16): A to Z, Bad Judge, Ellen More or Less, Feed Me, Lifesaver, Love is Relative, Marry Me, Mason Twins, Mission Control, Mr. Robinson, Two to Go, One Big Happy, The Pro, Old Soul, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Working the Engels (straight series)
  • ORDERED (7): A to Z, Bad Judge, Marry Me, Mission Control (ordered for midseason but canceled before air), One Big Happy, Working the Engels (straight series), Mr. Robinson
  • RENEWED (0): none
  • STILL ON* (1, on Netflix, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt)

2015

  • PILOTS (14): Coach (straight series revival, but never aired), Cuckoo, Wild Life, Not Safe For Work, People Are Talking, Problem Child, Sharing, Strange Calls, Superstore, Take It From Us, Telenovela, The Carmichael Show, Untitled Monica Potter, Crowded
  • ORDERED (6): Coach (straight series revival, but never aired), Crowded, People Are Talking, Superstore, Telenovela, The Carmichael Show
  • RENEWED (2): Superstore, The Carmichael Show
  • STILL ON (2): Superstore, The Carmichael Show

2016

  • PILOTS (14): Time Crunch, Good Fortune, Imaginary Friend, Me & Mean Margaret, Sebastian, Sunset People, Dumb Prince, Grand Junction, A Bronx Life, The Good Place, Marlon, Powerless, Trial and Error, Great News
  • ORDERED (5): The Good Place, Marlon, Powerless, Trial and Error, Great News
  • RENEWED/STILL ON (2): The Good Place, Great News
  • ON THE BUBBLE (2): Marlon, Trial and Error

2017

  • PILOTS (8): Champions, Relatively Happy, The Sackett Sisters, Spaced Out, Where I’m From, A.P. Bio, What About Barb?, Will & Grace (straight series revival)
  • ORDERED (3): AP Bio, Champions, Will & Grace
  • ON THE FALL SCHEDULE (1): Will & Grace 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TY10pANm4eM

Sean L. McCarthy

Editor and publisher since 2007, when he was named New York's Funniest Reporter. Former newspaper reporter at the New York Daily News, Boston Herald and smaller dailies and community papers across America. Loves comedy so much he founded this site.

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