CBS has yanked new series The Ex List from its Friday night schedule effective immediately, and after only four episodes according to TV Week.
It's not yet clear yet whether production will continue, or what CBS will do with the 9pm time slot, though it seems certain that the show will be canceled. According to the TV Week report, CBS will air a repeat of NCIS in the slot this week at 9pm.
Friday nights are something of a wasteland for the broadcast nets, but CBS has had relative success with Ghost Whisperer and Numb3rs. CBS has struggled with the 9pm slot, canceling Close to Home, then Moonlight, and now it appears The Ex List will be short-lived.
In retrospect, CBS probably wishes it had kept Close to Home. Moonlight performed worse than Closer to Home, and now The Ex List is down off the Moonlight Numbers. We don't fault CBS for trying to improve its lot in life, and at the time both the cancellation of Close to Home and Moonlight seemed to make sense.
If you have been following our Renew / Cancel Index, this move comes as no surprise since from its first airing The Ex-List has been the CBS show in most danger of cancellation.
While we don't blame CBS for trying something other than the standard procedural in the 9pm slot, but after trying to be more unique with Moonlight and The Ex List, it might be time for CBS to stick with a less unique procedural, or as CBS is doing this week, extend its "Crimetime Saturday" reruns into Fridays at 9pm.
We'll keep you posted as details unfold on Ex-List's future.
let’s just get this over with to save us all a lot of trouble. blah blah blah blah moonlight blah blah blah. now we don’t have to hear another word about it.
tom, what’s this Moonlight you’re talking about?
Im glad this is removed, but now we have, GULP, Moonlight “fans”
Moonlight fans! NOOOOOOOOOO
Soooo you are not disappointed….I am a ML fan…..
Seriously though I do hate to see this happen and so soon….I mean it has only shown four eposides…is this really a smart move on CBSs part? What are their options….and no I am not one of those that thinks Oh boy, ML is coming back…I haven’t lost all touch with reality….LOL
If they finish up the show they’re working on now will they then sell it overseas of dvd? Seems reckless to just pull it but hey, what do I know!
It was probably too young for CBS. tfs
Ha Ha Ha,
I don’t think you have to worry overmuch about Moonlight fans. But as I am one, I do want to say, Yeee hawww!!! Told ya so!!!
Wow I thought CBS would atleast give The Ex List a couple of more episodes but I guess I was wrong. Looks like Flashpoint or Harper’s Island may be getting that slot soon. And the show is called Close to Home not Closer to Home.
Good news. If CBS had someone tuned in to viewers’ wants right now, it would try re-running Moonlight episodes 1-16 in that hopeless time slot. Betcha it would stay right with GW–maybe even surpass it this time around–now that people have heard of it. Yeah, we’re BACK!!!!! Wooo-wooo!
Susan, Moonlight is not coming back. They will not air Moonlight reruns. They will not order new episodes of Moonlight. It is never coming back. They will air crime drama repeats or bring back one of the prime time game shows. Either option will get better ratings than original episodes of Moonlight, nevermind reruns.
Holly, The Price is Right Primetime, etc. will not necessarily get better ratings than Moonlight did, but it’s so inexpensive to make it will almost certainly be more profitable. If CBS is willing to bump GW to 9pm (where I think it might get better numbers anyway) it makes a lot of sense to put game shows at 8pm. I’m not sure how much sense it makes to sandwich a game show in between GW and Numb3rs though.
If they put in Flashpoint, I would check that out….I did not get to see it in the summer and would like to see it. I have never heard did Cbs officially cancel Swingtown? I know that it finished it’s summer run, but that is it.
I was figuring a couple of airings as a stop-gap until they premiere something new, not a permanent option. They may want to wait until mid-season to premiere something new rather than airing only a handful of episodes before the winter hiatus.
Hookedonmick, I’d be surprised, though not completely shocked if Swingtown returned, but if it returned as anything other than a summer show, I would be very, very surprised.
Psst… It’s Close to Home, not Closer to Home.
Psst…fixed. I may just wind up giving you administrative access so you can fix that kind of thing yourself. That approach has the added benefit of allowing you to remove any inappropriate apostrophes.
This still doesn’t mean cancelling Moonlight was a bad move. It just means picking up The Ex-List (and putting it in that time slot) was an even worse move. But of the two shows, at least Moonlight had a loyal and devoted fan base — just not a large enough one.
hookedonmick – There has been no official word on “Swingtown” still. At least it wasn’t yanked after only four episodes and given it’s full 13. Definitely a Summer show. Not to be confused with the Fall line-up.
Oh, let’s see what Tassler has to say. Looks like CBS will be suffering from their own Ex Day. “We like our show, but we’re a little disappointed in the ratings.” Oh, poor poor CBS. I’ll bet Diane Ruggerio is breaking open a bottle of champagne right at this moment, happy to join the team of “Cupid.”
Even as a “Swingtown” fan, “The Ex List’s” premise was bad from the start! Just a degrading, one-step back of the evolution of women. “The Ex Day” really made me wonder if somebody at CBS was smoking pot when they came up with that! Either CBS made the smart move and came to their senses or a whole lot of people who sent those bouquets wanted their money back from all of the restraining orders filed from ex’s and blamed CBS.
Exactly true Mark…
I’m surprised CBS doesn’t stick repeats of The Mentalist there, given how well it did the last time.
hahaha take that CBS for cancelling Moonlight or for that matter Close to Home.
Networks have made many blunders with Friday shows such as:
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